


His Beautiful Mind

by Francessimagination



Category: Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-21
Updated: 2018-04-21
Packaged: 2019-04-24 08:10:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 44,328
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14351448
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Francessimagination/pseuds/Francessimagination
Summary: Bulma stumbles upon a special scouter in Vegeta's night table during one of his training sessions with Trunks. She places the scouter on her face only to realize that it's his life story from age 5 until his arrival on planet Earth at age 26. A/U-ish.





	1. The Novice Apprentice

Bulma peered out of the window of the Capsule Corp. She was determined to understand, to get into the inner psyche of the short-tempered Saiyan as she stared and listened to the insistent hum of the gravity machine. She had counted three hundred, eighty-seven minutes and sixteen seconds as she set her coffee on the window sill. Vegeta and Trunks had been training since dawn in preparation for the world martial arts tournament. Bulma knew that he'd never let up on Trunks' training; if anything Vegeta would want Trunks to compete with the adults instead of the children. A tiny smirk graced her lips as she remembered how her once three year-old son would wrap his arms around her neck when she carried him. Now he was a muscle-bound eight year-old with an attitude that rivaled his father's. Usually kids his age would still possess the prominent belly that was a natural part of childhood, whereas Trunks was sculpted better than a body builder. Bulma shuddered at the thought of soon having to chase girls away. She wrapped her sweater around herself tighter as she shivered from the air conditioning. Vegeta had been obsessed with keeping the house at what he called an optimal temperature. That was easy for him to say, both he and his son could warm themselves using their ki. Bulma was left to layer herself in fleece in the middle of summer; temperatures would peak at over one hundred Fahrenheit. She smiled at herself and rubbed her palms together for warmth. As far as she was concerned he probably wouldn't be back inside unless it was to eat.

Bulma made her way back upstairs in search of something to warm her hands with. Now that she had taken a short leave of absence from work, she didn't really know what to do with herself. She blew her warm breath into her palms and clenched them tightly. Vegeta! He was seldom caught without wearing a pair of gloves on his hands. She held the handle to his door. Both Bulma and Vegeta agreed on a separate sleeping arrangement for him should he ever come out of his capsule too late. She didn't like to be woken up from dead sleep to him tossing and turning in order to find a comfortable position on the bed. Bulma entered his room and instinctively surveyed her surroundings before walking around freely.  _Okay Bulma_ , just a quick in and out. She knew how he felt about his personal things being touched. As a matter of fact, he hated it. He didn't have many possessions, but the few he had must have been of relative importance to him.

* * *

Bulma threw down her blueprints for the gravity machine on the ground in anger. Her calculations were not optimal and she was frustrated at the prospect of herself being incorrect. What was wrong with her? The circumference of the gravity machine always ended up being uneven. In order for her to maximize the power and usage of the machine, there could not be a falter in a single calculation.

"Well can you build it or not?" Vegeta asked peering over her shoulder as he twirled a wrench in between his fingers.

"I can, but I need your old space pod for measurements, where is it?"

Vegeta reared his head back and shot her a sour look. "What, are you an idiot?" he spat.

"Basing my research on something intangible is far harder than if I have something tangible to work with," she rebutted, "If you want this finished, you're going to have to cooperate, so for once in your pathetic life, please help me out a bit. I know that my mind is too valuable for you to kill me, so there's no use in threatening me, it won't work. Now step to it asshole!"

She watched Vegeta flinch under her command and fold his arms. "I'm not going anywhere. I could care less whether or not I need you, but I don't need anybody else on this property. So unless you do as your told woman, I will kill each of your employees one by one. By the time I get to your parents, I will execute them in front of you. If you want to call my bluff, I won't stop you. Just bear in mind the consequences of your actions." He pointed his nose to the ceiling in victory and awaited her compliance.

Instead her open palm met with his cheek catching him somewhat off-guard. He was actually taken aback by the force that she managed to muster in that single slap. "Damn you Vegeta, Damn you and your arrogance. This is planet earth, and I am Bulma Briefs, I will not give in to your little temper tantrums. Results will not show every time you rear that ugly shaped head of yours. I will go and get your pod, but not because you threatened my parents, it's because I want you out of my house!"

* * *

Bulma opened the first drawer of his armoire and peered inside. Nothing but spandex shorts that he used to train in when he didn't want to wear a jumpsuit.  _'At least he's neat. Definitely a night and day contrast from Goku. I don't know how Chi-Chi continues to watch after Goku as if he were one of her own children.'_  Bulma pulled open the second drawer, more spandex shorts neatly folded at the crease. Wow, Vegeta sure is anal about keeping his stuff in exceptional condition. She shut the armoire and curled up on his bed.

* * *

"Stupid son of a bitch, who the hell does he think he is? Ugh, I swear that this guy is on a power trip everyday in order for his over-extenuated ego to grow even bigger than his receding hairline." She whipped her capsule at the ground and watched as the dust cleared revealing her vehicle. She began to massge her temples rigorously.  _'Calm down Bulma, keep a clear head,'_  she thought. "I believe they fought in the Kenti Desert North of Goku's house. I'll park my car at his house and continue in my aircraft." She smiled and pushed the button to start the engine.

**Mount Paozu**  
  
"Gohan, you're not going to get anywhere by the way you're studying!" Chi Chi hollered at the top of her lungs. "I already explained to you how to figure out the slope of the tangent, but once again you're not listening to me!" Chi-Chi began to scrub the laminate off the table in anger. "My baby is going to grow up to be just like his muscle head father," she cried.  
Gohan turned his attention to his parking lot as he watched Bulma hop out of her car.  _'Maybe she'll take me out for a bit,'_  he thought. A light knock at the door was enough to snap Chi-Chi out of her crying spell. She wiped her eyes with her apron and rushed over to the door.

"Hey Chi-Chi, I'm actually going to leave my car in your driveway if that's alright with you. I'm looking for Vegeta's old spacepod. Hopefully once I get that I can begin the production of the gravity machine, and then he'll be out of my house," Bulma spat in one gasp.

"Oh yeah, he lives with you. How's that going?"

"Please Chi-Chi, do not remind me of that. I'm trying to correct my mistake by building this machine for him. Hey how about if Gohan tags along with me. I sure can use the brawn. Come on kid!" Bulma called out.

Gohan's face lit up as he dropped his pencil on the desk. "Oh no Bulma, Gohan has to study. He's going to Orange Star Private School next fall, and nothing is going to mess up that chance!"

"Come on Chi-Chi, I'll tutor him if you need me to! Let's go Gohan!" Bulma turned on her heel and threw the capsule for her aircraft on the ground. "He'll be home before the sun goes down Chi-Chi," she said as she started the machine and hopped in. The wind it created made the dirt fly into Chi-Chi's face before she had a chance to protest.

Gohan flew alongside the aircraft in search of the pod. Icarus appeared out of the clouds and began to fly circles around Bulma's ship. "Gohan!" She shrilled. "Get that thing away from me before I crash!"

"Don't worry Bulma he's on our side," Gohan reassured. It didn't keep Bulma from wondering the worst, like if the purple dragon nicked one of her wings by accident. "Look Bulma," he shouted pointing toward the crater in the ground.

"Nice work kid. That wasn't very far from your house!" She said landing her ship next to the crater. "Do you think you can grab that for me? I'd do it, but I don't think I'd be able to climb out of there myself."

Gohan smiled and slid down the crater. He hoisted the pod over his head and threw it.

"Gohan have you lost your marbles! What if you hit me with that thing?"

Gohan held the back of his head and cackled. "I guess I didn't think of that!"

"Here," she said as she headed to the back of the aircraft. "Place it in the back for me please and thank you."

"Go on ahead without me Bulma, I'm going to catch dinner tonight for my mom and I."

"Okay Gohan, but hey, how's your mother holding up, I mean with Goku gone and all." Bulma called out.

"She's hanging in there. I do my best you know. I don't like to see her cry. I haven't fought in a while. I don't even train because it makes my mother upset. I just want to make it easy on her you know," he said with his head down. "I'm sure when my father gets back home, she'll be happy again." He lifted his head and smiled from ear to ear.

"Take good care of her Gohan, she means well. I'll meet you back at the house okay."

"Okay!"

~/~/~

"You let him do what Bulma?" Chi-Chi screamed at the top of her lungs. She jumped back and began to bite her nails fearing the worse. "I've already lost Goku, and I won't be able to live my life if my son weren't with me either!"

"Geez calm down Chi-Chi, he's Goku in a boy's body. He can take care of himself you know." Bulma said as she un-capsulated her car. A large blue fish fell out of the sky and Gohan landed on top of it beside Bulma's ship. "Gohan, what did I tell you about throwing large objects?" a visibly shaken Bulma asked him as she grabbed her chest.

He chuckled before turning towards is infuriated mother. "I brought dinner mother," he said shyly. Chi-Chi said nothing as she clenched her teeth in shock.

"Well I think that's my cue to leave," Bulma said while hopping into her aircraft. "Thanks a lot Gohan, I wouldn't have been able to do this without you." She tossed him a bag of zenni making sure his mother wasn't watching. Even though she was the wealthiest woman in all of West City, her friend refused to take what she called handouts from her.

"Later Bulma!" he called out after her before mouthing thank you.

Bulma reached the Capsule Corp. by dusk. Her mother was entertaining Vegeta by the barbecue as she landed in the yard. Bulma hopped out and made her way to her lab.

"I did the dirty work by getting the pod. Now you can carry it to my lab," she ordered. Vegeta opened his mouth to counter, but just as he did she held up her hand. "The sooner you comply with me the faster I will work. Argue with me and I'll work slower. I already know how important it is for you to get to the Super Saiyan level. Now chop chop."

"What do you want me to chop?" He asked reluctantly through clenched teeth.

"Huh?" she asked in confusion.

"You said chop chop, now what do you want me to chop?" he screamed while the ground shook under him.

Bulma pondered what he said for a while before throwing herself to the ground in laughter. "Vegeta that's-that's just a...a saying," she cried in between words. She held her stomach and began kicking her feet. "It means hurry up!"

"Get out of the fetal position woman or you will feel my wrath!" he threatened.

"Do your worst to me," she cried turning red in the face.

Vegeta lowered his ki and ripped open the back of Bulma's aircraft which sent her into an immediate frenzy. "Where do you want me to put it?" he asked with a smirk.

"Follow me," she said as she led the way.

Vegeta set it down beside her table and left. "Geez Vegeta, there's no need to take everything so seriously," she called out after him.

"It's not possible for me to keep my temper under control around you woman. Every time you open your mouth I want to rip out that unruly tongue of yours," he said with his back still turned to her.

Bulma bit down on her tongue and refused to address him.  _'He can win this battle,'_  Bulma thought,  _'The score is a touch lopsided in my favor.'_  
  
"Hey, wait how do I open this?" She looked up and saw her door swaying back and forth. "Fine, I guess I'll have to do this myself." She extended her palm cautiously on the black plate and made contact with it. The sound of the hydraulics startled her as the door began to open. "That wasn't so hard," she mused.

Bulma emptied all of his belongings on her workstation, eager to pick them apart to find out information. There were three scouters, two of which were to calculate power levels but one was different. She held it up and noticed 5 other buttons on the scouter marked with symbols. She concluded it to be Saiyan and meant to ask Vegeta what they meant later. She pressed the regular button that was used to read power levels but instead it ejected a tiny chip about two centimeters long. Bulma would have missed it had it not made a sound once it fell out. She carefully inserted it back into the scouter and set it down. She reached over to the black necklace and dangled it in the front of her. What an odd color for a necklace, she thought. Bulma put it down on her desk and shone the light over it. She quickly concluded the black to be dirt and readied a pail of hot soapy water to soak it in. Bulma swirled it around before she removed it gently with a pair of tweezers and patted it dry with a cloth. The coloring of the jewelery slightly took her aback. The necklace itself was pinkish-gold in nature and shimmered in the light. Bulma whipped open the drawer and reached for her magnifying glass. She set it down and trailed the magnifying glass to the charm. It was engraved with a woman's face, and from what Bulma could initially tell, the woman was gorgeous.  _'I wonder who that is... or was?'_  Bulma turned it around and studied the symbols, they were the same as the ones on the scouter. She allowed the piece to adorn her neck and smiled at her reflection on her glass desk.  _'Bulma Briefs if you weren't wealthy, you would have this appraised and sold. I have to show this to my mother,'_  she thought.

Bulma ran to the yard, stumbling on her father's pets on the way. She slowed as she saw Vegeta turn the corner and eventually came to a halt. He allowed his eyes to pass over her and bore his fangs. He walked closer to her and visibly showed his displeasure.

"Why aren't you working?" he spat, his glare enough to send anybody to an early grave. He folded his arms and began to grill her with his eyes.

_'Bulma, why didn't you turn down the hall as soon as you saw him?'_  She squirmed under his glare and turned her head. "I was looking for somebody and found you instead. And since you're not who I'm looking for, I should be on my way." She moved away from him and returned back from the way she came. Stupid idiot monkey. Bulma turned back to check if he was still watching. "What a creep," she said aloud. She turned back and stopped in her tracks wide-eyed and began to shake. Bulma quickly composed herself glared at him. "You're in my way." She tilted her head to the side and tried to look past him at her destination.

Bulma watched him with unwavering eyes. She found herself engaged in a battle of the wits combined with attitude. "Oh, by the way," she started, "I found this in your pod. It couldn't have been of any relative worth to you since it was so dirty you couldn't even appreciate the beauty of it." She smiled and showed off her new necklace to him. "Honestly Vegeta, if I weren't the wealthiest woman in the world, no wait. Okay, if I were some sort of drug addict I would pawn this off for my next fix," she laughed, "That's because I wouldn't be in my right mind, as pretty as it is and all. And who's the woman on the charm, she's gorgeous." She peered up at Vegeta's face as his mouth fell agape. "Geez shut your mouth Vegeta, or a fly will get in," she joked. She brought the charm to her face. "And do you mind translating the back for me too?"

Vegeta's mouth closed and his face began to contort in rage. He squeezed his fists and took a step back. He had no words to express the fury that was running a marathon through his mind. He thought he was going to end her life right then and there. How dare she display such disrespect for royalty? "Where did you get that?" he rasped. Vegeta held his hand up before she could answer. He took another step back for he knew that if he touched her he would kill her. He held his head and let out a tribal scream as his ki began to resonate around his body.

Bulma ducked and covered her head as the glass to the picture frames against the walls shattered. "Quit it, you're going to ruin my house," she shrieked. Bulma uncovered her head and looked up. "I only asked you to translate it for me. Gosh, what's the matter with you?"

"Where did you get that?" he shouted sending Bulma into the fetal position. "Did I say your third-class filth can touch that? That necklace is worth more than your life. How dare you, how dare you speak of that necklace as such. I'm going to rip your head from your body and feed it to your father's animals!" The fire in his eyes burned her when she looked at him. Her father streaked around the corner and slammed into the wall.

"What happened?" he shouted.

"I have no further use for your daughter!" Vegeta hollered, "I can use you instead." Vegeta raised his glowing palm towards her.

"Oh no you don't Vegeta. I need her as much as you need me!" he said rushing over to his daughter's side.

"Give me that necklace," he screamed kneeling down and reaching for it. He pulled his hand away immediately before touching her. "Take it off of her now!" The doctor carefully removed it and handed it to him gently. "If I catch you near this again, I will take your life!" He blasted a hole through the wall and looked at her. "It says the crown jewel of Vegeta!" he said as he put it around his neck and walked away.

Bulma shakily rose to her feet and braced herself on the wall. Never in all of their arguments had he raised his ki in anger at her. Bulma knew that she upset him greatly and almost paid for it with her life. Bulma tried to focus on what her father was saying but soon pushed him away for some space. She had just unknowingly insulted his mother, and she was royalty to boot. She had to admit, that it was a pretty horrible joke, no matter how sarcastic she tried to sound.

"I will be in my lab, Dad," she whispered solemnly before walking away.

* * *

Bulma rose from his bed and shook her head from her thoughts. She knew that she didn't want to travel back to that time. There was no need to rehash such ill feelings toward him. She was on a mission and she was determined to see it through. Bulma rose from Vegeta's bed and reached into his night table. She pulled out a used glove and set it down on his bed, along with seven necklaces with carbon tags attached to them. Again those same exotic symbols that she was unable to translate were on each of them. There was no other explanation for them except that they must have belonged to elites that lost their lives in war. She respectfully placed them on his bed next to his glove. She reached in again hoping a pair of his gloves would magically appear next. For a man that had so many, they sure were hard to come by.

She pulled a scouter from his drawer and leaned back on his bed. It was the alternative scouter that she had found in his pod with the Saiyan symbols. Bulma placed it on her face and picked a button to press. Nothing showed up. Certainly this isn't dead, she thought to herself. She tried another button and the images on the screen began to fast forward. She immediately pressed another button and it began to play. Bulma removed the scouter from her face. It's a camera. The symbols...they must stand for stop, play, fast forward and rewind. She rewound the chip. Bulma knew that she shouldn't watch it without Vegeta's permission. They were private. But a part of her had to know, she had to solve the mystery of his psyche. Would he know? She placed the scouter on her face and pressed play.

"No, it's not in Japanese-Romaji," she said in disappointment. She pressed it deeper to her ear and felt a wire clamp on to her lobe. Bulma writhed in pain on the floor as the sharp pain continued to attack her ear. "Haj ie tava oned?" She said out loud. Bulma slammed her hand on her mouth. Realizing that it wasn't what she wanted to say. She pulled the scouter off her face and stared into the ear piece. "What have I done...What have I done?" She said it twice to ensure that she was speaking in her native tongue. Her eyebrow rose in sudden realization of what had happened to her.  _'Did I just learn another language through osmosis...But the osmosis of what though? Genes? Brainwaves? Impossible, it doesn't seem dangerous.'_  She brought it up to her face to study it once more.  _'This must be how he learned our language so quickly. This is a mind-breaking discovery. I must obtain permission to study the composition of this scouter,'_ she thought to herself. Bulma cautiously slipped the scouter over her face and sighed before bringing her hand up to the small button. Play.

* * *

"Brat. Get in here, it's time to train!" King Vegeta bellowed.

As the young prince ran over to his father he lost his footing and fell at his boot. His scouter went sliding across the room. The boy quickly composed himself and collected his scouter. He wiped it off with his cape and held it up to his face. His brown mane stood almost as tall as his fathers' and his scowl still matched the one he shot today. He placed it back on his face and stood to attention in front of his father. Vegeta came up to about his father's knee and looked up at him.

"Give me my assignment father," he yelped eagerly. The boy was obedient to his father's call and readied himself in his fighting stance.

"You will fight seven hundred and sixty-eight Saibamen today. The facilitator will be conducting things differently today, the saibamen will be coming in waves so do not let your guard down for one moment. If you fail, you will surely feel my wrath," he threatened. He ripped the cape off of his son and stalked out of the room.

The boy closed his eyes in concentration and awaited for the horde to surround him. He heard them beginning to crawl on the wall in front of him. He held out his small palms and released an energy ball with a force so powerful it sent him back a few feet. He powered up and shot himself into the air and kicked the little goblin to the ground. He turned around and caught a foot which he used to twirl the body around knocking each one away from him. He then proceeded to slam the body into the ground. He landed gingerly and batted an oncoming ki ball that was hurled in his direction into the group of Saibamen that emerged from the duct.

~/~/~

Wave 10

The young boy's suit was reduced to rags from being grabbed and clawed at numerous times. He was almost finished and the victory was slowly becoming apparent as he came to the last two goblins. He fell to his knees heaving. He looked up through his black eye and held his hand out to the oncoming enemy. "Final Flash!" he shrieked. The green monster disintegrated in front of his face before it could strike.  _'One more and victory will be mine,'_ he thought.

"Behind you," she called out. The prince's concentration was broken as he looked toward the glass to see his mother pointing in another direction.

"Wh-umph!"

The last of the horde grabbed him from behind just before the beams of light began to emerge from its body. "No," he yelped as he used the last of his strength to break free and spin toward it. He held onto his wrist to steady his hand and released a blast. Wrong move. As the boy's ki met with the monster's, the room overflowed with light as the facility began to shake. As he got his vision back he descended back and stood on his wobbly legs.

"I did not fail father," he squeaked out as the burly man walked toward him. He looked at his son and raised his hand. The boy's weathered smile quickly faded to shock as his father's open palm made contact with his head. He fell to the ground and held on to his cheek.

"You were too distracted," he yelled pulling his foot back to kick him. The child held his arm out to protect his ribs but to no avail as he felt them crack.

"I did what I was told father, I beat all of them," he choked out. Water began to well up in the boy's eyes as his father continued his assault on his son.

The king grabbed him by the rags of his jumpsuit and pulled him up to his face. "If that had been a stronger enemy, your life would have been lost." The jumpsuit ripped sending Vegeta plummeting to the ground creating more pressure between his lung and his broken rib. The King grabbed the boy by his hair and hoisted him up to eye level once more. "Look at me when I'm speaking to you boy," he ordered. He used his other hand to force the boy's chin up. "There's water in your eye child," he rasped. The boy let a sigh escape his lips. "Do you want to cry Vegeta?" The boy shook his head as he desperately tried to force the tears back down from where they came. The King set him and down and knelt in front of him. "I'm going to beat you hard Vegeta... so that they won't beat you harder." He shook him violently with a force that could have broken his neck before once again dropping him to the ground.

The prince tried to stand up straight but doubled over in pain from his ribs. As he looked up at his father he closed his eyes in preparation for his oncoming fist. By the time the fifth punch to the boy's frame rolled around he had already been rendered unconscious.

"King Vegeta," she cried out running over to him. "You stop that at once!" She sprinted over and delivered a drop kick towards the king's chest before attending to her son. "Nappa quickly, ready the tank for him!"

The bald-headed Saiyan quickly exited the room and made his way over to the lab.

Vegeta rose to his feet and wiped his mouth. "You will pay for your insubordination!" he declared. "You were the one that distracted him." He looked upon her with contempt.

"I tried to warn him," she said hoisting him up gently careful not to irritate his little body any more.

"As soon as he is finished with that tank, he must come and see me," he ordered. "Do not go near that boy, I will not allow him to lose focus."

"I will be the judge of that Vegeta!" She pecked his forehead with her lips and made her way over to the laboratory.

The Queen removed his scouter and set it down on the lab table. She stripped him down to nothing and attached the mask to his mouth and closed the tank.

"Nappa give me his status," she barked.

"He's suffered a broken rib, a punctured lung, his leg was broken in two places as well my queen. Also he suffered multiple contusions on the face, but it shouldn't be enough to leave a scar," he reassured.

"Nappa, can I confide in you? I need your trust that you will not tell this to the king."

"At your order, my lady."

"You can relax with the formalities now Nappa," she said while pacing around the lab. He nodded in compliance and turned his attention toward her. "I-I'm afraid... I'm afraid that Vegeta is going too far in trying to harden our child. I've watched him deliver our son continuous beatings often until he was either out of strength, out of breath, or he simply became bored with the prospect. I'm often forced to bite my tongue on the matter and stay out of it. But you know, he is my son just as much as he is Vegeta's and I deserve to have a say in his fate." She hung her head and dismissed Nappa.

Queen Kelanna pulled up a chair and watched her son's tiny frame float around in the water. She sat before him and wept.

* * *

Bulma removed the scouter from her face and quivered. For a while she sat there, staggered at how everything that she thought she knew about Vegeta became uncertain. She looked down at the ground and wept in fury and indignation. How dare anybody have to live their life as her husband had done for so many years. She didn't really know him at all. She knew that he had led a hard life, but never really bothered with figuring out the details. Forget the gloves, she no longer wanted them. What she did want to do was continue to watch her husband's life story told from his perspective. She wiped the tears from her face and returned his belongings to the drawer. His mother, she was gorgeous.

"Woman!" The word snapped her back to reality as she forced herself to her feet. Bulma hurried down the stairs and took a quick glance in the mirror to make sure her face was clean. She sprinted to the kitchen and smiled at the two Saiyans.

"Woman, the brat and I are hungry. Where is our food?" he demanded.

"Vegeta, you should have given me fair warning so that I could prepare something. Now I have to rummage through the refrigerator, cook it, and then serve it," she said as she walked over to cup his face. Vegeta raised an eyebrow and backed away. "But you know I can just order something for you and Trunks if you'd like." She rummaged through the kitchen drawer for the menus. It had been something that they'd done often when she had no notification that he was coming inside to eat. She'd just hand him all of the menus to the best restaurants in town along with her credit card and allow him to order as much as he wanted until his heart was content.

Bulma turned to Trunks and tussled his hair. "How's training going so far?" She asked him. "Is your father working you hard?"

"Yeah," he panted, "The gravity machine's hard to keep up with when you're not super." He walked over to the tap and held his head under the pipe in hopes of quenching his thirst.

"Keep up your slack attitude boy and you'll never reach that level of combat," Vegeta spat.

Trunks smirked and continued to drink from the tap.

"What did I tell you about that, Trunks?" she squealed as she reached into the cupboard for a cup and slammed it down on the counter.

"Too late," he said. "I don't need it anymore."

"Woman I've made up my mind." Vegeta picked up a pen and began to write the quantities down on the paper. "Give me that plastic rectangle," he ordered.

"No, you only need that when they come here, you're not going to give my credit information over the phone."

Vegeta bore his fangs and held out his hand. Bulma batted it away and reached for the phone and contemplated the unreasonable numbers that he put down on the paper. Was it really necessary for three hundred bowls of every type of rice on the menu? She traced her finger down to the meat, seven hundred pieces of each type meat. Was he insane? She was absolutely positive that one restaurant couldn't possibly meet the demand of Vegeta's appetite. He wasn't necessarily a messy eater like Goku, but as neat as he was, he could sure back away the food in his small frame; and Trunks was no better. Bulma's eyes floated to the bottom of the list and she slammed the paper down. "Do you absolutely need to have six gallons of ice cream?" she hollered.

"That's for the brat," he spat as he ripped open the refrigerator door hoping something would magically appear that would tickle his stomach before the food arrived.

"I was able to perform four hundred and twenty-two push-ups under one hundred times gravity today," Trunks bragged as he stuck his nose in the air. "I could do more if I wanted to though."

"You were barely able to do four hundred, I'm surprised that you managed to force another twenty-two out of your slack self," Vegeta scoffed in disgust.

"Yes hello, it's Bulma Briefs from the Capsule Corporation...Yes, yes, it's really me," she said rolling her eyes. She hated that whenever she called somewhere or someone that for some strange reason admired her, they would always tell her that she wasn't who she claimed to be. Nothing could possibly annoy her more. "I need to order from your restaurant and I hope that you have enough supplies to meet my demands." She began to pace back and forth with the list. "Please have a pen and paper ready, it's quite long." She stopped and twirled her hair in between her fingers. "Okay, I need three hundred bowls of every type of rice you have, and I need at the very minimum seven hundred pieces of each meat that you have. I also need two hundred bowls of every type of noodles in every flavour, and I'd also like every selection of meats that you have. And lastly I would like six gallons of chocolate and vanilla ice cream," she said. "Did you get all of that?" She stopped pacing the kitchen again and bore her teeth. "No, this is not a joke," she cried. "Grr- if I don't have this food at my house within the next three hours I will see that you lose your job because of your incompetence!" she screamed.

Trunks leaned on the counter and smirked. He found it quite funny when his mother would lose his temper and begin to threaten people. This was a trait that she so obviously picked up from Vegeta.

"When's the food going to be here?" Vegeta asked impatiently.

"Within the next three hours, when he comes, give him this, and make sure you get it back from him. I have some errands that I need to run," she said making her way back up the stairs.

Vegeta waved her off and turned to Trunks to discuss his fighting technique. Bulma ran back up the stairs and into their shared bedroom. She wanted so much to return back to his room and put on his scouter. It was an autobiography of his life as told by his own eyes and ears. She paced her room back and forth and threw herself on the bed burying her face in her pillow. She should ask him. But ask him and this whole situation would blow up in her face. Bulma was unsure of why she hid such information from her. Was it because he was afraid that she may think less of him as a man, as a father? Impossible, she would stay by his side regardless of what was revealed on camera about his life. She knew she would. She laid her head on her pillow for some rest.

* * *

"Mother, I'm going back into the gravity machine. Father said that he wants something to eat again at seven o'clock sharp," Trunks called out to her from downstairs.

"Okay, I'll see to it," she rasped as she tried to overcome her sleepy state . Bulma threw her feet over the edge of the bed and inched forward. She shook her self awake and ran over to Vegeta's room and peered out the window to make sure that he entered with Trunks. She was careful to not move the blinds in case he looked up. He had a knack for catching anybody that watched him from afar. It was most likely a trait that he'd been unable to shake since he were a child. She ran over to the night table and pulled out his scouter.

* * *

Prince Vegeta opened his eyes to his mother's concerned stare. He watched her drain the tank and offer him a towel as he stumbled out and fell into her chest. "Quickly my child - get dressed, your father wishes to speak with you," Kelanna chided softly. She watched her son shake his head violently. He uttered no words as he was leaning on his mother for support. He was still under the influence of the gases that kept him sleeping soundly in the tank.

"He will beat me again if I go," he said as he reluctantly rested his head on her shoulder, trying to fight his sedation. She held him close and stroked his black mane.

"Come," she said as she grabbed fresh clothing for him. "Give me your feet, she whispered helping him dress. The Queen hooked his cape to his armor and handed him his scouter. "Now go," she said embracing him before shooing him out the door.

The prince paused at the door before holding his hand at on the button to open it. He caught his breath and entered. The guards bowed as he made his way down the long corridor leading to his father's throne. The Saiyan elites stood at attention as he passed them by. The child held his hand over his chest and bowed.

"You requested to see me father," he said.

The king looked up and dismissed the elites before addressing his son. "You failed today," he repeated.

The prince held his head down and clenched his fists. "I apologize. I should not have let myself be distracted so easily."

The king's palm met with the side of his son's head. "You won't be able to apologize when you're dead," he rasped harshly.

"I understand," the boy said holding the side of his head.

"No, you understand nothing. You have no idea what your destiny holds for you," the king spat angrily, "I am preparing you for the harsh life you will have to live. Whether you like it or not, you will not always have your mother and I. You will be alone until you die. And until I beat that notion of 'family' Kelanna has poisoned you with, you leave me no choice." The king paced back and forth in front of the boy. "Forget everything that you've known regarding your family. You are your greatest asset, you are the only person that you will ever rely on. Remember these words boy, for one day you will thank me."

Vegeta peered up at his father and gave him a puzzled look. "You say that as if I'm going somewhere," he said rolling his eyes, "I will continue my training and I will be the strongest Saiyan that has ever lived."

"You won't be on this planet forever," the king said as he eased himself back onto his throne.

"Well you had better take care of my mother until I get back," he ordered.

Vegeta glared down at his son enraged. "Care for no one, for nobody will ever care for you!" He leaned out of his chair and tripped him over. "It is impossible for me to possess such feelings for you boy. You should feel the same towards me." The king stood to his feet and trapped the boy under his boot.

"Let me up," he screamed as he struggled under his father's weight.

"You're weak, boy. I must toughen you for the years ahead. Never entrust anybody to protect you."

The prince raised his ki and pushed himself to his knees. "Get off of me!" he screamed as the aura of his ki surrounded him. He pushed himself to his feet and glared at him. He batted away his father's oncoming fist and jumped back.

The king smirked. "Your fighting technique has certainly improved, boy," he said while expertly deflecting his punches, "Did you have an epiphany while you were unconscious?" The child aimed for his father's face. The king caught his fist and slammed him into the concrete creating a rift down the corridor. The boy rose gingerly and glared at his father. "Get back to the training facility boy," he ordered.

"Yes father," he said holding his hand to his chest.

"And, boy, stay away from the woman, or there will be consequences."

The prince nodded and left the room.

"Come on Nappa, surely you must be stronger than this," he piped as be caught his energy ball and threw it back at him with ease.

Vegeta was on the tail-end of his last training regiment for the day. He planned on taking an ice bath before retreating to his room for rest. He sure wasn't going to the regen-tank twice in one day.

"Let's go Nappa," he said as he began to power up again.

Nappa flinched as his scouter exploded on the side of his face. "Grr- you're going to pay for that, boy."

Vegeta glared at him with his obsidian eyes and curled his lips. "Fight me," he roared with eyes of fury.

The prince stood shakily on both feet with majority of his weight shifted on the left one. He lifted his arms in the air and repeated himself. A bloodied Nappa stood silently and refused him waving him off.

Vegeta stood infuriated as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. "Come on," he said in attempt to bait him. Vegeta ambled over to Nappa and fell at his feet. With the strength he had left Vegeta tried to make him fall. Nappa flicked his foot sending the boy flying into the wall.

~/~/~

Vegeta opened his eyes and felt the sharp pain ambush his side. As he screamed the intensity of his pain increased. He looked up to the ceiling and muffled his cries with one hand while clenching his soiled sheets in the other. Why hadn't they put him in the tank? How long had he been out for? Had they left him to pool in his own blood while there were ample medical supplies that the scientists could heal him with? He swore loudly as father walked in basking in his own self-righteous glory.

He looked down on his son before turning his head away. "You will not always have the privilege of a regen-tank. Sometimes your wounds will have to heal themselves." The king leaned on the wall before addressing his son once more. Vegeta writhed in pain as he tried to focus on his father's figure. "Sometimes, you will be the only one left after months of fighting, and you must learn to take care of yourself."

The prince arched his back off this bed as a sudden wave of pain overtook his small frame. "Why are you telling me this? Out with it all ready, Father," he rasped through his clenched teeth.

"You are being sold, along with the children of other elites to Frieza where you will work under his rule." Vegeta turned his head away from his son and watched as Kelanna came through the door in a myriad of fury.

"This is wrong Vegeta. I am taking my son and putting him into the regen-tank!" she screamed as she wrapped him up in the soiled sheets. The boy was fading in and out of consciousness as his mother gathered him in her arms.

"We'll see how far you will get with him," he threatened. She glared at him and turned on her heel. Vegeta grabbed his Kelanna by her hair and pulled her back towards his chest. She grimaced in pain as he twisted her neck to the side.

The boy forced his eyes open and scowled at his father. "If harm comes to her by your hand, I promise you that I will kill you." The boy's eyes fluttered shut as he fell limp in his mother's arms. The king scoffed and pushed Kelanna away from him towards the door.

"You will pay for your insubordination, Kelanna." She didn't turn back as she concentrated solely on carrying her precious cargo to the medical bay.

* * *

Bulma pulled the scouter from her face and made her way to the window. She stared at the gravity machine that housed her husband and her only child. "Was this the only promise that you made?" she whispered to herself. "Well know this Vegeta, I may not be able to protect you physically, but I will do everything in my power to protect you emotionally. This I promise you my prince. Both you and my child."


	2. My Only

Bulma opened her eyes and peered over at the empty space beside her. Vegeta had come to hadn't come to the room last night. Instead he had gone to his room. She noted the still perfect crease on the edge of the bed on his side. She took a deep breath and rolled over on her back as the hum of the machine caught her attention. ' _Dammit Vegeta.'_ She looked over to the clock on her night table and slapped her hand on her forehead. Had she really slept in until noon, it was unheard of. Both Vegeta and Trunks were going to be out of the gravity machine expecting lunch to be on the table.  _"Tegwana,"_  she swore. Bulma's eyes shot open as she slapped both of her hands over her mouth. ' _No, No, No!_   _This can't be happening.'_ She sat upright and clenched at her sheets. "My name is Bulma Briefs, my name is Bulma Bra Breifs, I have two parents, and I'm and only child. I have an alien husband and a son." The sweat began to bead down her face. "Damn, damn, damn." She held her hand to her chest. "Alright, I can still say damn."

"Woman!"

Bulma jumped from her thoughts as she wrestled with her sheets and dropped onto the floor. "Damn." She reached for the nearest piece of clothing to throw over herself which happened to be her lab coat. Bulma rushed down the stairs in her nightgown and tripped before entering the kitchen. "Yes, yes I'm here." Bulma quickly composed herself and searched the room for Vegeta. She looked down to see her son waving to get her attention.

"Uh, hey mother. We paged you three times, but you didn't answer. Father sent me to give you a message." He took a step back and cleared his throat. "Woman the brat and I want food. So uproot yourself from your fuh-,"

"Trunks Vegeta Briefs. If I ever hear or hear of you using such expletives I swear to you that I will show you the true strength of a legendary super saiyan!" She took a swipe at his head and missed as he ducked and made his way to the nearest window.

"When you get back in here, I'm grounding you for the rest of the afternoon!" she called out after him. She watched as he held the back of his head and smiled before disappearing into the white orb.

_'One would think that I would actually be able to spend time with my family. After all, that's why I took time off from work in the first place,'_ Bulma thought as she began to pace back and forth.  _'Well, this wasn't exactly the best time to take a sabbatical. The World Martial Arts tournament was around the corner.'_ Bulma returned back up the stairs and plopped herself back onto her bed. The only thing for her really to do was clean, and that was already being taken care of by the robots she built. Curse her intellectual mind. She refused to do any real work during her vacation. So the only thing left for her to do was to reminisce. She pulled the scouter out of her lab coat and cradled it in her palms. His story was like a drug that she refused to be weaned off of. If she had enough time, or if she permitted him to keep Trunks in the gravity room all day, she would be curled up on her bed watching her husband's life. Would he notice it was gone?  _'Well if he won't tell me, I guess I'll just have to take matters into my own hands.'_

 

* * *

 

The boy's eyes shot open and he looked over to the side to see his mother curled up on the examining table of the medical bay. Nappa stood idly by in case anybody were to enter the room. Vegeta sat up and began untying the bandages from his head. The only thing that he could remember was fainting in his mother's arms while she was carrying him. Mother. The only woman that he has ever let his guard down around. The only living being that he would swear to protect until the day he would be no more, was her. He knew it was in his power to see to it that no harm would ever come to her if he had anything to say about it. He allowed her to see into the far reaches of his five year old soul, so young and pure, unscathed by the things she was able to protect him from. He watched her tail writhe contently behind her as she broke away from her sleep. He looked into her eyes as she turned to him. She knew him better than the back of her hand, his likes and dislikes, his aspirations to be the strongest, to rule the planet, to amass the largest empire any Saiyan will ever see. Only her.

"Vegeta, those bandages were to stay on until the next day!" she said as she grabbed another roll from the drawer.

He shot her a harmless scowl and ducked when she attempted to wrap it. "I don't need that, I'm a warrior," he asserted as he unknowingly stood proud in his naked glory. He put his hands on his hips and thrust his torso out slightly. His ribs were bandaged up to his chest covering the left half of his breast and the right side of his wrist was bandaged up to his elbow.

"A warrior without any clothes." She cocked her head in the direction of a folded jumpsuit and a pair of gloves. Vegeta's face turned red as he looked down at his naked state and covered himself with his small palms. He growled showing his displeasure and shuffled over to his clothes. Kelanna couldn't help but laugh as he tripped while putting on his jumpsuit. "Would you like assistance?" she offered as she reached for his boots. He ripped them out of her hands and shot her another glare. Without saying a word, he floated into the air and slipped his boots on.

"What did my father mean when he said that I was being sold?" he demanded.

Kelanna's smile melted off of her face as her son stood before her arms crossed and legs spread shoulder-width apart. She turned her head and handed him his scouter. "You left it on," she said.

"Answer my question," he said, unwilling to change the subject.

"You are going away with a few other elites from this planet," she whispered solemnly barely audible to even him.

"I will not leave you," he said adamantly, "There is nobody capable of taking care of you on this planet while I am gone." He held his fist to his chest and stared at her.

"Vegeta, you mustn't worry about me. You will have to take care of yourself while you are alone. I will be fine," she said with a smile. Kelanna knelt down to his eye level and rested both her hands on her knee. "Now go, you are expected in the training room, you will be meeting the elites that you're leaving with."

"No. Until I know that you will be safe, I will not leave you." The boy timidly reached out his hand for his mother's soft face and stroked the hair from her eyes. "Mother, I will take care of you if father refuses. I can protect you from him."

King Vegeta looked on from the doorway listening in to the conversation. What had she made this boy into? She was softening him rather than hardening his soul to emotion. He crossed his arms and leaned on the doorway.

Kelanna gently moved her son's tiny hand from her face and kissed his open palm. "My son, do not say anything that you are unable to keep, your word will be your strongest bond."

He nodded and turned toward the doorway to see his father leaning on the frame. He scowled at him and took a step in front of his mother.

"Go down to the training facilities, so that you can be briefed brat," he ordered. The boy stood unmoving in open defiance to his father. "Do as I say boy." Vegeta shuffled around his father making sure to keep eye contact as he pivoted on his heel and left the room. Vegeta pretended to turn the corner and knelt at the doorway to listen in to their conversation. He masked his ki and held his hair down so that it wouldn't poke past the doorway.

King Vegeta turned toward Kelanna and glared. "What have you done to the child?" he demanded taking a step closer to her. Kelanna took a step back and bumped into the gurney.

"I have done nothing to him accept carry out my duty as his mother," she challenged.

He bent over to her eye level, leaving no room between the both of them. Vegeta gripped her by the shoulders and hoisted her off the ground before slamming her backside onto the table. "I've grown weary of warning you, Kelanna. You are no longer allowed to associate with the boy. If you are caught, your offence will be punishable by death. You've received plenty of chances, and your grace period has now expired." The hairs of his tail stood on end as it whipped angrily behind him. "The way that child looks at you makes me sick to my stomach," he said as he pulled his hand back. "I will teach you a lesson that you will not soon forget." He brought his hand across her face with force and she screamed out in agony. The king took a step back to admire the bruise he had inflicted upon his mate. "Wear that as a badge of warning," he rasped as he turned on his heel.

"Vegeta. If there were ever a day that I was not able to be with my son, life for me would not go on," she said holding her head down. "Threatening me is useless if you do not follow through with it. If you take my son away from me, trust me, you'd be doing me a favor if you make good on your promise," she whispered. Vegeta paused in his tracks and allowed the words to resonate. Kelanna lifted her eyes towards the doorway and watched as his tail disappeared behind the wall.

The young boy bit his tongue and ducked behind the doorway. He retreated behind another door and waited in case his father paused. The prince watched him turn on his heel and felt his ki dissipate as he wandered further down the castle hall. Once it was clear, Vegeta made his way back into the medical bay and floated to his mother.

"Vegeta, you should be training," she said without looking up.

"He hit you mother," he said reaching out toward her face. Before his fingertips made contact with her cheek, he clenched them shut in anger and turned away. "Mother, I..."

Kelanna held her hand up in protest. "There is no need to apologize for something that was not your fault." She looked down at him and smiled. "There's no need for you to worry about me, son. Surely I can take care of myself; I'm the Queen after all," she said holding her fist to her chest as her son had often done. This instantly put a smile on the boy's face and a glimmer of hope in his eyes. "Now make your way to the barracks for training. Don't make me speak twice," she scolded.

Vegeta started for the door and looked back at his mother. "When I come back, from wherever it is that I'm going, I will rescue you from him," he said. He turned and whipped his cape to the side in his dramatic exit.

"If only things were that simple," she said solemnly.

Vegeta leaned on the door frame just out of his mother's plain view. His keen hearing had picked up on what she said to herself. "Things can be that simple if only you'd trust me," he whispered under his breath. He flailed both of his arms in the air in frustration as he finally made his way down to the training room.

* * *

Bulma gently removed the scouter from her face and placed it on the edge of the bed.  _'Why hasn't he told me any of this?We've been together for nearly 10 solid years, and he still keeps secrets from me. And this isn't just any secret, it's an entire life. I really don't know him at all.'_ As soon as the humming stopped, Bulma grabbed the scouter from off of the bed and buried it under his other possessions in the night table. She tiptoed toward the window and peered outside. She turned around immediately and began to run for the phone. She frantically pounded down on the keys and pressed the phone to her ear.

"Hi mom."

"Oh, well if it isn't my long lost daughter Bulma Briefs!" she exclaimed. "Trunks Sr. you wouldn't believe who I'm talking to right now, it's our daughter's ghost."

"Mom..."

"Well how are things dear?"

Bulma closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose with her free hand. As she drew a deep breath she opened her mouth to answer. "Everything's..."

"I'm glad to hear that honey."

"But mom I haven't even said anything yet."

"Oh, and how's the sex post-pregnancy?" she asked with a hint of excitement dripping from her last word.

"Mother..."

"It's a completely valid question Bulma. I remember that you were afraid that you'd no longer fit him like a glove, if you know what I'm talking about!"

Bulma felt the blood rush from her face. "Mother, Trunks is eight. That's a question you should have asked me eight years ago."

"Well you tell him that nana wishes him a very happy birthday!"

"His birthday was nearly seven months ago."

"Well I guess I'm early," she laughed.

"No that would mean that you're late," she said. Bulma was rarely able to hold a conversation with her mother for longer than five minutes. It's not that she didn't want to, she wasn't able to. A conversation with Bunny Briefs meant the topic of conversation changed after every sentence. She was rarely able to complete a sentence that pertained to that topic. And if she got the opportunity, her mother would laugh in response. It was a never-ending pattern that lacked anything and everything that would be mentally stimulating. Never had she bothered to explain anything to her mother unless it pertained to shopping, cooking, or gardening. She had been a daddy's girl all of her life, and was definitely not planning to change anytime soon.

Bunny laughed into the phone as Bulma held it away from her ear and rolled her eyes. "Oh Bulma, you wouldn't believe what the doctor did to me last night," she swooned. "I bought some lovely lingerie and he didn't even wait for me to model them. He..."

"No mom. No. That is something that I never want to discuss. Not now, not later, not ever!"

"Bulma, you say that as if you didn't brag every time you had a midnight rendezvous with Vegeta before Trunks was even a thought," she said. "The doctor and I heard you every time. It's not like you were discreet."

"Focus mother, I called to ask you something."

"What is it dear?"

_'Fin_ a _lly, I've finally got her attention.'_ "I was wondering if you'd be able to whip up some food quickly for both Vegeta and Trunks. I will send Trunks over to pick it up."

"Anything for my grandson and my gorgeous son-in-law."

"Thank you so much mom. I will talk to you soon. Kiss dad for me." Bulma hung up the phone promptly just in case her mother started talking again. Even though Bunny was one of the most loving women she knew, Bulma was secretly afraid that she would go brain dead following a conversation with her. She tiptoed to the window and peered out toward the white orb. "I wonder what they're doing in there," she pondered to herself. After watching the orb like a hawk for a solid five minutes, she turned her attention back to her husband's scouter.

~/~/~

The sweat-soaked boy fell to the tiled ground at his father's feet drawing broken breaths. "Why'd you stop the machine?" he huffed.

"Because it has finally become clear to me that your slack attitude is holding you back," Vegeta spat.

"No Dad, that's not it."

"Then stop your insolent whining!"

Trunks straightened up and nodded in compliance. Vegeta pressed the button to start up the machine again. "We're skipping lunch," Vegeta informed. He watched as his son's bottom lip nearly hit the floor. "When you begin to take training seriously, I will allow you to eat."

Trunks felt the pull of the gravity down on his body. The lanky, yet muscular, eight year old pumped his arms in the air and began to walk on the other side of the gravity room. He tilted his head to the side and watched as his father performed quick jabs with his fists with the utmost precision. "What's the matter, boy, is the gravity too much for you?"

Trunks attempted to punch the air, but his attempts were fruitless as his arm fell back down to his side. "I'm going to enter the tournament," he forced out as he tried to hover in the air.

"Not with the way you've been training. I will not allow you to disgrace yourself boy." Vegeta began a series of kicks in the air and flipped his way to the other side of the room with ease.

Trunks ceased his struggling and stood up. "I guess I'll just go super," he said nonchalantly.

Vegeta turned as he felt the energy level of his son spike drastically. He watched the boy perform the exact same manoeuvres as he did but with more emphasis. He stopped and began a set of push-ups. First with his knuckles, then to his index and middle fingers to prove a point to his father. He rose to his feet and began to run circles around him with closed eyes allowing his instincts to guide him.

_'When did this happen?'_ Vegeta thought to himself. "Trunks, come here, son." Trunks stopped and stood in front of his father anxious for instruction.

"When did you ascend?"

"I was training in here with Goten while you were with mom. It was in the middle of the night and I didn't want to disturb you."

"You are lying; I would have felt such a spike in your energy."

Trunks jumped back and smiled. "Well I'm not sure when it happened. I think I was just born with it. I've seen you do it so many times, so I figured it couldn't be that hard, especially when I figured out my genetic make-up is different from yours, yet we're the same..."

Vegeta looked at him and cocked his eyebrow. He held out his hand to silence him. "That is your mother talking, not a Saiyan," he said. "Tell me, can the youngest spawn of Kakkarot ascend as well?"

Trunks nodded. "Of course, he said it happened when his mother was training him. He hasn't done it since because she began to cry."

Vegeta rolled his eyes in disgust.  _'Humans,'_  he thought. "Are you stronger than Kakkarot's boy?" Vegeta clenched his fists. "Tell me, I must know," he demanded as he waited on baited breath for the answer of his son

Trunks rolled his eyes to the ceiling. "I guess so, he doesn't know how to fly yet, and I'm a year older than he is. There's only a slight gap though."

Carefuly not to allow his face show any emotion, Vegeta stepped back with a sigh of relief.  _'We'll just have to make that gap bigger, won't we?'_  he thought. "I want you to try and hit me," he said holding his fist to his chest.

Trunks cocked his head to the side and shot him a blank stare. "Now why would I want to do that Dad?"

"Do it and I'll take you to the park...for a whole hour."

Excitement took over the young boy's features as he leapt to his starting position and began powering up. "Ready?" he asked giddily. "Here I come."

The boy lounged at his father throwing a series of punches at his face. Vegeta's eyes shot open in surprise at how quick he had become with a simple power up. Even though he'd never admit it, the prospect of blocking Trunks' punches had become increasingly difficult. The split-second of Vegeta's mental lapse allowed his son to graze his face with his fist. A smile washed over the boy's face in victory at the tiny blemish left upon his father's face. Joy soon turned to pain as Vegeta's fist met him square in the face knocking him across the room. Trunks' eyes began to fill with tears as he gingerly grazed over the sore with his finger. Vegeta's eyes widened in shock. He had hit his son plenty of times during their sparring sessions. But never had he done it out of anger or contempt for his son. Vegeta shook his head from his thoughts and relaxed his muscles.

"You didn't say that you were going to hit me back, Dad," Trunks finally said.

"Well I didn't say that I wouldn't now, did I Trunks?" he said quickly composing his face.

The boy drew in the snot from his nose that was about to fall and sobbed. "No."

"Grr- dry your tears, we're going to the park," he rasped reaching for the gravity controls.

Trunks forgot about his pain and shot up to his feet and barrelled toward the door. "Last one there's a rotten egg," he wailed as he took to the sky.

Vegeta leaned down on the controls for support. He had never felt disappointed in himself, out of his thirty some odd years of living, killing, philandering, and whatever else was deemed as a sin by humans. He had murdered masses of men, women, and children. But laying a hand on his son in order to protect his pride was something he knew was wrong, and it bothered him. His eyes glazed over as the memories of his father breached the firewall that we had set up in his mind.

* * *

_King Vegeta floated in the air and powered up his ki. "You've received all of this training, and you cannot even land a body shot,let alone graze my cape," he called down to the boy._

_Vegeta looked down at his gold-tipped boots and clenched his fists. He powered up and met his father in the air. He closed his eyes and let out a tribal scream and began to attack his father blindly._

_"Open your eyes boy," he ordered. "You allow your emotions to blind you and dictate your decisions. A trait which should only be possessed by the female kind."_

_The prince cracked open one eye before opening them both. As he looked around for the burly man he saw a flash of blue light underneath him. His muscles tensed as he braced himself for impact. Vegeta fell to the ground cracking the floor on impact._

_The king threw his head back and laughed. "I believe that my second born Tarble is tougher than you boy. That should tell you a lot Vegeta," he said punching his fists together beckoning the prince off of the ground. "It seems as if my first born is having a bit of trouble choosing his gender," he called out to Nappa. The king turned back to the boy. "Will you convince me otherwise,Vegeta?" he asked._

_Vegeta forced himself up on all fours and leapt toward his father's face making contact with his fist. The boy smirked at his impending victory as he passed by his father in the air. The same smirk was wiped from his face as he felt both of his father's fists make contact with his tail area. A dirty trick. He was pummelled into the ground at the feet of his father and began to twitch violently. The veins on his neck protruded as his body seized in pain._

_"That was dirty, and you know it," he choked out still twitching in pain._

_"I'm beginning to believe that I made the wrong choice in sending Tarble away." He nudged the_ _boy's_ _cheek with his foot to force him to look up. "Soft like the woman."_

 

* * *

 

"Dad. Dad," Trunks called out into the gravity room. Vegeta snapped back to reality as he repaired his mental breach. "Let's go, my time doesn't start until I touch the swing." He ran behind his father and tried to shove him toward the door.

"Let's go son," Vegeta said careful not to sound regretful of the decision.

Bulma paused the scouter. "He has a brother?" she whispered to herself in shock. Her stomach began to churn. Bulma pushed herself off the edge of Vegeta's bed and made her way toward the window once again. She watched as both father and son made their way toward the sidewalk. "He must be taking him to the park," she mused. "Well that will definitely give me plenty of time," she said excitedly. She got a running start and sailed through the air landing on his bed with a thud. Play.

* * *

The young prince met both Nappa and Raditz outside of the palace barracks. He wasn't in the mood to fight, he was in the mood to kill. And he was determined to make his father the first. If not, he was going to make him suffer. Dare anyone lay a hand on his mother out of contempt, they would surely meet their untimely demise at his hand.

"Something on your mind prince?" Radditz asked in disdain.

Vegeta looked at him and grunted his reply as he brushed past his knee into the training building. Nappa shot Radditz a look of warning before following the dwarfed boy. "Nappa, if I kill the king, what will that make me?" Vegeta asked.

Radditz choked on his saliva before turning down the first hall he saw; there was no way he would be convicted of treason. "You are too young to take the throne prince Vegeta. Your mother will act as the head of the monarchy until another suitor is found for her," Nappa replied.

A smirk graced the child's face as he closed his eyes. "It looks as if I have some plotting to do," he said clasping both of his hands behind his head. "Where is that bastard anyway?" Vegeta asked.

"Your father ordered for his location not to be disclosed for the time being," Nappa explained.

Vegeta cocked his eyebrow and began to scan for his father's ki _._ "No," he whispered. The prince ran between Nappa's legs and blasted him in his back. The burly man fell to ground stunned from the unexpected attack. Vegeta blasted open the barracks door and followed his father's ki signature. He powered up and flew frantically past the castle guards.

He blew the doors open to the throne room and searched for his father. The room contained only one servant who was scrubbing blood from the carpet methodically. Vegeta felt his heart palpitate out of his body as he began to search for the ki of his mother. Nothing. "Where is the Queen?" he demanded. The servant abandoned his rag and bowed before the prince unmoving. "No, I don't want formalities, I want an answer," he screamed. "Where is she?" The servant remained quiet before the boy, lying unmoving.

The boy turned and ran out of the room still in search of his father. He followed the signature to the communications wing knocking out every guard on his way. He hid behind the wall and watched his father stare at the large screen. The lizard on the other side paced back and forth, his thick tail slapped the floor each time he pivoted on his heel.

"The agreement was that you were to deliver planet Tasba to me today. Why do I not have the planet monkey?" Freiza rasped.

"The estimates that we gathered were wrong. Their level of combat and other factors such as manpower and weaponry are three times to what we initially expected," the king replied.

"I will reach your planet in two days time," he informed. "What has become of the soldier who was in charge of this mission?"

"The incompetent soldier was executed as he gave me the report," Vegeta said coolly.

The prince ducked back under cover and sighed. It wasn't his mother's blood that was spilled in the palace throne room. "Then where is my mother?" he whispered to himself. Vegeta discreetly left the communications wing and ducked into medical bay upon hearing Nappa's voice.

"Where is the disobedient prince?" Nappa yelled into the hall. The sound of his voice sent the servants bobbing for cover under and behind anything that they could find. Nappa shook his head in anger and continued down the hall trying to pinpoint the boy's ki signature.

Vegeta ran down the hall and sought refuge in the study. The room housed the ancient Saiyan texts he was forced to memorize when he was three. He ran his fingers over the bindings of the books and turned the corner. Kelanna was comfortably perched on the table with a scroll in her hand. She turned her face to the side allowing her bruise to come into his view. "It got worse mother," he said standing in front of her.

Kelanna remained silent as she rolled the scroll and placed it at her side. "You should be training, my son." She eased herself off of the table and threw open the ruby red curtains. The sun illuminated her frame while she tied them in place. Vegeta cowered in the shadows with his arms folded. "Come here to me, son," she said reaching out her hand. Vegeta stalked to the end of the shadow and reached out his gloved palm to reach his mother's hand.

"Can you feel him coming?" she asked.

Vegeta looked up at her and cocked his head to the side.

"Your father," she informed.

Vegeta had been so caught up with staring at his mother, that he lost track of his father's ki signature. He looked toward the door and felt his father approaching. "Look at me, my prince," she demanded. She knelt down to his eyes and planted a kiss on his forehead and another one on his cheek. She reached into her shirt and pulled out the pinkish-gold rope and dangled the pendant in front of him. "Take good care of this," she said. She placed it around his neck and tucked it under his armor and jumpsuit.

"Mother, why-?"

She placed her index finger on his lip to silence him. "Remember son, not everything in this grand universe can be explained."

The prince's hair began to stand on end as he felt his father's raw power blast open the doors to the study.

"Kelanna," he rasped. Vegeta stood in front of her and held his arms out. "Your actions are detrimental to this boy's livelihood. I will not allow you to taint his mind any more than you already have."

"If you are going to execute me for doing my duty, then so be it, Vegeta. 'When it's a Saiyan's time, they do not fight it'," she quoted aloud.

"So be it," he said. He stretched out his palm and fired a beam toward her. The prince jumped in front of her and batted it back toward him. The king bent his neck to the side and the beam burrowed a hole through the wall.

"Vegeta, do not stand in the way of your mother's fate," he ordered. "It is inevitable."

The prince readied himself in his stance to fight him. "I am going to kill you," he piped. Two elite soldiers walked into the room and awaited the orders of the king. Vegeta cracked his knuckles and lounged toward the boy. The king's fist met with the boy's stomach and he doubled over in pain.

"You're lucky that's all I'm going to give you, boy. You attacked Nappa from behind. You inquired about the throne on the event of my death. You were searching desperately for her weren't you? The only thing that is holding my back from killing you is the treaty between Freiza and I. As long as there is something or someone in this universe you care for, fear will manifest in your heart and eat your soul. If you remedy this worm called love, you will have nothing to fear."

The king immediately turned his attention toward Kelanna and held out two fingers. The prince crawled to his father feet and pounded on his calves. "Leave her alone," he cried. Vegeta looked Kelanna in the eye and shot a beam toward her chest.

"No...Mother," he whispered. Vegeta abandoned his hold on his father's leg and fought down the pain in his stomach. He ran toward his mother and caught her as she began to fall. He eased her down gently and shifted to a position on all fours. "Don't leave me. Mother, don't leave."

King Vegeta leaned casually against the bookshelf and watched the small prince.

"Mother loves you very much my son, but I have to go away for a while," she said arching her back in search of a comfortable position.

"Will I see you again?" he asked stroking her forehead.

"We'll meet again, whether it is in this life or the next."

"Do you promise?"

She looked up at the small prince and smiled. "My son, grow up to be a good boy... for mother, okay?"

"But who will take care of me?"

"Your father will see to it that no harm comes to you my child."

"But mother, why can't you take care of me? Father hits me!"

"He's only trying to help you become a man," she said as she stroked the side of his face.

"Is that why he's taking you away from me?"

"No, you'll be starting your serious training soon, and there must be no distractions!"

"But you are not a distraction." He looked down at the wound to his mother's chest, and looked up at her with tears welling up in his eyes. It was torture; her life was slipping away as the wound began to eat away at her energy. He placed his hand on her chest and raised his ki. "If I can give you some of my energy, will you be alright until I can get you to a regentank?"

"No my son, you mustn't let them fall," she said wiping them away with her hand. Her eyes gently fluttered shut.

"Mother... stay awake...Please, I can fix you," he cried through clenched teeth. He ran to the silk curtain and tore it down and began to bandage his mother's chest.

She chuckled and opened her eyes. "Don't ever let them see you cry...alright. Promise me?"

"I promise," he said refusing to let the tear drop fall. He shifted his position and held her head in his tiny arms while stroking her dark brown hair. She closed her eyes and took her last breath.

The young prince shook with wrath towards his father who casually leaned on the wall quietly awaiting her death. He pushed himself off and rolled his eyes. "You will have no distractions now, Vegeta. Know that I am only doing this in your best interest."

"You sick bastard!" he screamed as he powered up. "Why did you do that to her?"

"Vegeta, don't make me laugh," he said as he threw a hand in the air signalling to one of the elites to clean up the body. "Get rid of the body, I have other errands to attend to. Report to the barracks." He turned on his heel and left through the door.

"Don't you dare touch her," he yelled as he covered her body with his cape. Prince Vegeta powered up and quickly immobilized one of the elites. The other grabbed at the curtain that was nestled on Kelanna's bosom and yanked it off. Vegeta placed his palm on his chest and let go of a massive blast. The charred body fell to the ground. He turned his attention back to his mother's body and lay down beside her.

"They won't ever see me cry mother," he said before offering a kiss to her forehead. He picked himself up and made his way toward the scroll that she had been reading.

_A Saiyan is powerful._

_A Saiyan is cunning._

_A Saiyan knows when it is their time._

_A Saiyan fears nothing._

Vegeta rolled the scroll and placed it beside his mother. He looked down at her body shimmering in the light. So pure and beautiful. He stared at her for what seemed to be an eternity, admiring her peaceful state. "I won't let you down, my Queen," he whispered. Vegeta turned around and held his head down. He was leaving her behind. Where he was going, she could not come with him, not even in his memories. He held his head high to try to stifle his tears. "I will take this necklace with me, but only because you told me to," he said. He waited for his tears to dry before he left the room and didn't turn back. Everything that he was, his hopes and dreams his aspirations; everything that he knew to be pure and just... died when his mother was no more.

* * *

Bulma paused the scouter and dried her tears. "Vegeta," she whispered. "I didn't know, I didn't know," she sobbed. "I'm so sorry, I disrespected her." She tried to regain control of her emotions. "I can ask you why you didn't tell me until I am blue in the face, but with you, I never receive a straight answer dammit!" She smiled and began to fan her eyes with her hands. She pulled out a small mic from her pocket and placed it in her ear. "Dial Chi-Chi," she commanded.

"Hello?"

"Chi-Chi, it's Bulma," she sobbed. "Do you have any time for tea?"

"Bulma, is everything okay?" the woman asked from the other end.

"I don't know Chi-Chi. I will see you soon."

"We'll talk when you get here then."

~/~/~

"Push me higher dad," Trunks demanded.

Vegeta bore his fangs as he grabbed the swing pulling it to a stop. "Your time is almost up," he informed. He looked at the watch that Bulma had given him when he first moved in at the Capsule Corporation. The only thing he knew how to work on it was the stopwatch, and he only used it for the countdowns until his next meal would be. He had to admit, it was one of the most useful items that she had ever given him.

"I have three minutes left dad," Trunks rebutted before running over to the slides.

Vegeta rolled his eyes and reluctantly followed behind him to ensure he could grab him as soon as his timing device began to beep. "You will only get to go down that flat metal sheet four times in the three minutes that you have left," he said. He had been watching the boy's every move. He slid down the slide seventy-one times, swung back and forth on the metal chair two hundred and thirty-three times before he jumped off and landed with a thud in the sand, not to mention the fourteen times he went back and forth on the monkey bars. Vegeta never understood what was so important about the various alloy shapes, and he would certainly never understand how they could keep his boy so intrigued for hours on end. The boy had royal Saiyan blood coursing through his veins, and was entitled to as more money than an adult would ever see, yet the only thing he wanted to do was climb asymmetrical structures and romp around in the dirt. Vegeta looked down at his time piece as it began to beep.

"Time is up," Vegeta called out to him. "Do not make me speak twice, Trunks." The boy took his last ride down the slide and reluctantly followed his father to the sidewalk. "Now it is time to train without ceasing, boy," Vegeta spat. "We will not make such an impromptu trip again." Trunks nodded and followed closely behind his father. "There are a few things about your technique that we must discuss," he began. "We will do so over lunch." Vegeta neared the corner to the Capsule Corporation and stopped dead in his tracks. The hover car parked in the driveway did not belong to his mate. The door whipped open and the first thing Vegeta saw was an afro of yellow hair poke out. He felt his face flush as she fully came into view.

"Hey Nana," Trunks screamed jubilantly. "How's grandpa?" He ran up to her and embraced her.

"Oh, Trunks dear, he's good."

Vegeta looked on in confusion. At of all the years he'd been living, there was never another being that he actually feared. Bunny Briefs happened to be the first. He didn't fear physical harm by her hand. It was psychological damage that he was afraid of. He kept his distance from her as long as he could, he didn't care how it made him look. She was always jovial, no matter what type of news came her way. He was positive that her IQ was less than that of her pets. Besides, during his inaugural year at the Capsule Corporation, he was nearly convinced that she wanted to sleep with him.

"Well if it isn't my handsome son in law," she cried out as she opened the trunk.

"Trunks, help me get this food out of the car will you? Bulma asked that I cook for you two, and how would I ever refuse?"

Trunks piled the food in his arms and balanced them to the door. Vegeta brushed past the boy to open the door. A large paper covered the handle and he grabbed it to read it.

_Hey, I asked my mother to cook for you two.I knew you'd be hungry._

_I told her that Trunks would pick it up, but I'm pretty sure she wanted to come by to visit._

_I've gone to Chi-Chi's house for tea._

_And Vegeta, please be nice to her._

_Bulma._

Vegeta clenched his fists and ripped the note off of the door. "Damn."


	3. Sweet Dreams

Bulma curled up in Chi-Chi's couch with her cup of tea and a biscuit. The black haired woman poured herself some tea and sat across from her. As Bulma shakily pulled her cup to her mouth, she spilled a few droplets on her lap causing her to flinch. She took two sips before nibbling on her biscuit. Bulma had yet to look her hostess in the eyes for her entire visit. Chi-Chi awaited patiently for her guest to be the one to break the silence.

"He didn't do anything if that's what you're wondering Chi," Bulma finally said. "It's what he didn't do." Bulma rested her tea on the coffee table and finally looked Chi-Chi in the eye. "I feel as if I don't even know who I'm living with."

"What makes you say that?" Chi-Chi asked before downing the rest of her tea. She made her way to Bulma's side and held her hand.

"I found this scouter, but it's not like any other scouter that we've seen; this one was a video camera. The technology alone on this thing...it boggles my mind Chi-Chi. Usually video cameras only capture the what the eye of the beholder is seeing. Not this one. This scouter video camera allows me to watch him as if I'm a third party. I have the full three-hundred and sixty degree angle on him. At first, I didn't realize it because I was so shocked that I was able to watch his life transpire on camera. But the more I watched, I finally began to notice."

"So what you're saying is that through this  _new technology_  you're able to create a better video camera?" Chi-Chi asked.

Bulma's face flooded in embarrassment. She was here to share some of what transpired on the scouter. Not of recreating a video camera. The scientist in her would never rest. "Well that's not the real reason I came. I was just caught up in something else," Bulma said before her sentence trailed off. "Well about the video camera. The contents basically document his life, and right now I'm watching his childhood." She ducked her head in shame.

"And I take it he doesn't even know you have it." Chi-Chi scolded. Bulma kept her eyes to the ground. "Well, you're a grown woman, so I'm in no position to be giving you advice. But I can give you my opinion. If that were me, I would put it back where I found it and forget it was ever there. A man like Vegeta doesn't want your pity."

"Chi-Chi, he watched as his father killed his mother. I was watching it earlier. There is no way that one could be stable after going through that type of emotional trauma." Bulma reached into her pocket and pulled out the scouter. "How can I let him suffer alone?"

"He's been doing it for years Bulma. He's not a human like you and I. I'm sure he has different ways of coping. Training may be one of them." Chi-Chi said embracing her friend. "Well now that we've had that heart-to-heart I'm going to begin my cooking for this evening."

Bulma raised her eyebrows and cocked her head to the side. "Chi-Chi it's only two o'clock," Bulma said glancing at her wrist watch.

"Don't forget, I have three hungry Saiyans to feed during that long tournament," she mused. "The preliminaries are first thing tomorrow morning, and I need to make sure Goten gets a proper meal." Bulma smiled as she cradled the scouter in her palm. "Did you want to help me with washing some vegetables Bulma?" Chi-Chi awaited an answer from the living room. "Bulma?" she asked making her way to the edge of the kitchen. Chi-Chi found Bulma curled up on the couch wrapped in a blanket with Vegeta's scouter on her face. "I guess some things never change," Chi-Chi said as she returned continued to peel her carrot.

* * *

Prince Vegeta tucked his legs to his chest as he awaited instruction along with three other children his age. It had been two days after his mother had passed and there were only four people that knew about it; himself, his father, Nappa and Radditz. Everyone else had been told that an accident occurred in the science lab and the queen was one of casualties; as a result the entire Saiyan empire and all of its subordinates sent gifts of condolence. There was even a recently purged planet that was renamed Kelanna in her honor. He sat unmoving with Nappa and Radditz standing on either side of him in case of another pending rebellion. Neither of them said a word to him, nor had they taken their eyes off of him for a split second. When they were in conversation with a passing commander, they wouldn't even acknowledge his presence with their eyes; they only showed them with their hands and actions. Every ten minutes the boy subconsciously pressed his palm on his chest to make sure the pendant was still there. He looked up at Nappa and smirked.

"Making sure you don't get attacked again I see," he said easing down on his back. He flashed Nappa his middle finger and stuck out his tongue. "And you Radditz, stop staring at me, I'm beginning to think that you're desiring me as a companion." Vegeta grabbed his stomach and laughed as Radditz's eye flickered in anger.

"Why you little-,"

"Listen up troops," the commander interrupted. The man stood at about Nappa's height and was just as stocky. His clean shaved head showed the two parallel scars that carved their way down from the top of his head to the tip of his right ear. The scars he wore on his head allowed privy to the years that he had spent in the Saiyan army. "I am commander Cole and I will be leading this team throughout the missions of Lord Frieza's regime. Four of you will be departing today on Lord Frieza's ship. While there, you are expected to act in total obedience. Any action that signifies your defiance to the empire will be punishable by torture, death is too easy." He paused and looked around for any impending questions. "As I call your name, you will address me as 'yes commander'."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and chuckled as he lay flat staring at the ceiling. The other children gasped at his defiance and inched away form him.

"Elten, Azra and Levi," he said aloud ignoring the prince's little outburst.

"Yes commander," they said in unison.

Vegeta slapped his forehead and laughed. "If I tell you to jump, will you ask me how high?"

"Prince Vegeta that is exactly the disobedience that I said would get you killed on Lord Frieza's ship. Besides having a mouth on you that is way beyond your years, you cannot even listen to a simple command without rebutting with a foolish remark. I will be your commander and I expect your full attention, especially on missions. I will not have you endangering the lives of the other troops."

Vegeta sat up and studied the other children. He turned his attention to the taller boy Elten; he stood a few inches taller than himself and wore short black hair. A deep scar ran down the left side of his eye to his cheek bone. Elten's black tail which was whipping back and forth anxiously caught Vegeta's attention as his lip curled. "You must be a mongrel, Saiyans don't have black tails," he teased. "Did your mother have an affair?" Vegeta threw his had back in laughter. The hairs on Elten's tail began to prickle in frustration. Nappa scooped the prince up in one arm and held his hand over his mouth. The more Vegeta struggled the tighter his grip became.

The twins Azra and Levi huddled around Elten in attempt to calm him down. "What would your mother say if she saw how you treated us?" Azra piped out.

Nappa uncovered his mouth slightly for him to answer. Vegeta's eyes widened and his mouth fell slightly agape as he tried to process his thoughts. "A female," he whispered in disgust. He quickly composed himself and smirked. "Queen Kelanna wouldn't say anything," he replied coldly. "She's dead."

"So you don't care that your mother died in a science explosion?" Azra asked in bewilderment.

"What's done is done. There is nothing that I can do about it. Dwelling on the past only holds you back. Speak nothing more of the matter."

"You're lying to me," Azra accused. "There's no way that you-."

"Enough!" Vegeta shrieked as his eyes bore down on her from Nappa's height. "Mention her again and you're going to wish you never met me." The tiny boy began to struggle again in Nappa's grip.

A lump formed in the girl's throat as she began to sweat. She hid behind her twin brother in case the prince were to escape the hand of his caregiver. The girl stood at the exact same height as her brother. Her brown hair was slicked back into a ponytail so that it wouldn't obstruct he scouter. Levi, her twin brother had his brown hair slicked back behind his ear.

Nappa dropped the boy with a thud as he continued to stare her down. Commander Cole came between them to break up their little spat. "Frieza should be here within the hour," he began. "Whatever animosity that has sporadically formed between the two of you I suggest you squash it now. You are not each other's enemy, you are each other's ally. You prince Vegeta will be dependent on her and the rest of your squad mates just as they are of you."

The prince rolled his eyes and made his way toward the door. "I will be back once I sense this powerful force coming," he informed. Both Nappa and Radditz turned on their heel to follow him. He left abruptly through the door with both of his guardians following closely. "I do not wish to be followed," he said said harshly. "Inform me via my scouter when Frieza arrives if I am not there within the hour of you sensing his power." Both men shot glances to each other before looking down at him and nodded their approval. They saw him to the door and returned to the training room.

"I depend on no one."

**~/~/~**

The prince landed carefully in the mountainous terrain that overlooked the palace. He took his place on the edge of the cliff and watched as his home basked in the glory of the sun. He gently removed his mother's pendent from his neck and placed it on the ground before him. "You should not have ordered me to take care of this mother," he said aloud. "Father said that I cannot take you with me."

He removed his scouter and held it out toward the palace. "This view is for you," he sighed. "Father said let this view be the last thing I see before the years of carnage that I will have to endure. I'm not sure what he means yet, but I'll figure it out."

He placed the scouter back onto his face and looked down toward the pendent. Vegeta gathered it in his hand and wrapped it around his wrist. He walked over to the spring pool and gathered the water in his hands. He poured it into the dirt and took of his gloves before he began to mix it into mud. He kneaded it like dough making sure that it the right texture; not too watery and not too thick. He slipped the pendent from his wrist and placed it into the mud.

"Father told me about the legend of the super Saiyan too," he said as he worked the mud around the necklace making sure it was no longer glistening. "He said if I work hard enough I will become powerful, and nobody will be able to match my strength in combat." He held the necklace out for inspection. "The 'ascension to legendary is to be earned, it is not given'," he quoted his father.

Vegeta looked at the shallow grave that he had dug for her; he had taken her body to give her a proper burial. It hadn't been the royal send-off that he had wanted to give her, but it was the only thing he could manage to muster under his father's watchful eye. He looked down at his wilted flower that he had placed at head of the grave and gripped the pendent tighter.

The prince placed the now marred necklace over his neck and tucked it under his armor. Nobody in their right mind would try to take the necklace from him. It looked worthless, and that was exactly the effect that he wanted. He rinsed his hands in the spring as best he could and pulled his gloves back on. His scouter caught his attention as it began to process information at a rapid rate. He tried to focus on it but came up fruitless as it was too fast for him to read. He shut down the power level reader in case of an information overload. The tiny hairs on his neck began to stand on end as he looked toward the sky. The spaceship had covered the sun and left the palace in a film of darkness. Vegeta hurried to the edge of the cliff and jumped. He powered up and made his way toward the castle at full speed.

**~/~/~**

Vegeta landed on the platform at the transportation bay and took his place in line with Elten, Azra and Levi. "Are you scared prince?" Azra asked as she focused on the doors to the transportation bay.

"I fear no one," he said as he flicked his wrist at her in dismissal.

"That will soon change young prince," Commander Cole whispered.

The hydraulics to the doors began to hiss as they opened slowly. A short white lizard stepped out onto the platform and smirked accompanied by the two men that stood on each side of him. The tall green man flicked his hair out of his face and cocked his head toward the prince.

"That must be Vegeta's boy," he whispered to the pink blob as he pecked his head in the prince's direction. Vegeta shot him a look of disgust and turned his attention to Frieza.

"Quiet Zarbon," Frieza ordered as he inched closer to the children. He made his way over to Azra and pulled her ponytail so that her neck was exposed to him. "I think that this one may be a hit at the brothel Dodoria," he rasped as he shoved her into the arms of the pink plump man. She didn't fight Dodoria's grip as he scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder. Frieza grabbed Vegeta's shoulder and shoved him in the direction of Zarbon. "Make sure he gets into the holding cell," he ordered.

Zarbon nodded as he placed a punishing grip on the Vegeta's shoulder. The boy showed no weakness to the sharp pain in his body. He didn't wince once; he held it in and focused his view on the commander.

Frieza continued his inspection holding his wrist behind his back pacing back and forth between Elten and Levi. He turned to face both Zarbon and Dodoria. The white lizard smirked and slapped the side of Elten's face with his thick tail knocking him to the ground. "Oops," Frieza choked out trying to stifle his laughs. "It seems that I can barely control myself around prizes such as these." He threw Levi in the direction of Zarbon and lifted Elten by his throat with his tail. "Hmmm, you know what, take this one too." With the flick of his tail Elten went sailing into Zarbon's direction.

Zarbon held out his hand and caught him by the head gripping him like a ball. "Nice catch," Dodoria said. Zarbon flicked his head in the air in acknowledgement of his compliment.

"Where's king Vegeta commander, I wish to speak with him," Frieza said as he dipped his head.

"I will bring you to him Lord Frieza."

Vegeta watched Frieza disappear behind the door with Cole and closed his eyes. "Okay brats, it's time to ready yourselves for departure," Zarbon rasped.

"Where are you taking my sister?" Levi squealed as he made his way over to Dodoria. The pink alien flared his ki causing the boy to fall back a few steps.

"This is my prize." he huffed. "Then it's off to the brothel for you!"

"What's a brothel?" she asked struggling in his grip.

"You'll soon find out little one," Dodoria cackled.

The three boys followed Zarbon wordlessly deep into the gut of the ship. The eery silence wrapped around the children as they made their way into the belly of the ate away at the walls of the hall and a brown tinge had traced it's way through the grout of the tiles of the ship. It was a definite contrast of the soft colours and comfort of the palace. Once they came to the door, he commanded it open and forced Elten, Levi and Vegeta inside. Zarbon stood at the door as it slid shut and locked. "Give me back my sister!" Levi commanded as he smashed his fists into the door.

The room was no different than the halls except for the sink; if there were to be an inkling of running water anywhere on the ship, it would be the sink perched atop a grey brick. Neither of the three dared to touch in fear of what may come out of it. The dim lighting was barely enough for them to maneuever around the room without hitting any obstacles that may lay in their way Vegeta shot Levi a dumbfounded look. As it weren't enough for him to contend with his new found reality, he'd also have to share his space with two others and was just about ready to show his displeasure in more ways than one.

"You idiot," Vegeta spat. "Don't you think you should have said something while we were walking through the ship. You wait until he's gone to whine." Vegeta crossed his arms and leaned on the wall.

Levi didn't listen, he continued to wail on the door with his fists as the tears began to well in his eyes.

"Levi, if you don't shut up on your own, I'm going to make you shut up," Vegeta threatened.

"What the hell is a brothel anyways?" Levi asked still pounding on the door.

The young prince huffed and turned his head and surveyed the wall in search of an escape.  _Found you._  
**  
**

* * *

"See Chi-Chi, he tells me absolutely nothing," Bulma complained pulling the scouter from her face.

"Bulma, if it was something important I'm sure he'd tell you. I'm pretty sure that there's plenty of things you have yet to tell him anyways. So what's the use fretting about it?" The black haired woman put the finishing touches on her mountain of rice cakes and smiled at her creation. "Besides Bulma, you were always perfectly capable at figuring out stuff on your own anyways."

"Chi, I'm just afraid that I won't have enough time to spend with him."

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, he's always training. And now that Trunks is beginning to take his training seriously, he has no time for me." Bulma sighed and rested her forehead in her palm. "Maybe I should get pregnant and tell him it was an accident. That way I have a fifty percent chance of having a girl!"

"Oh please Bulma; like that man really wants another child running around the house." Chi-Chi removed her apron and threw it over the kitchen chair. "Will you be staying for dinner Bulma?"

"Oh I wish I could Chi-Chi, but have to get back to Vegeta and Trunks," Bulma said placing the scouter into her pocket.

**~/~/~**

"And you know what she said to me Vegeta?" Mrs. Briefs asked him before she pushed another biscuit into her mouth. "She said I can't believe that the accomplished scientist Bulma Briefs is your daughter!"

"I can hardly believe it myself," he mumbled under his breath.

"And then I replied greatness runs in the family I suppose." She threw her head back and began to giggle uncontrollably spilling some of her coffee on the carpet.

Vegeta stared at her in shock. He feared that he would slowly go brain dead or maybe even have an aneurysm if he continued to have a conversation with her. He would have been thankful for the aneurysm. Even though he had always though of death as the coward's way out, he would have been secretly thankful if it were to come during his mind-numbing conversation with Bunny Briefs. He couldn't comprehend how he had spent three years in a house with her without physically harming her. He tried to go to escape to the gravity machine, but she followed and continued to yap his ear off.

Vegeta turned the corner sharply and teleported to the backyard. He couldn't take it anymore; the woman's eyes were always closed anyways. She would have never guessed where he'd gone, and he knew that she wouldn't bother to look. He took a seat beside Bulma's flowers; if he were to defile himself in any way, it certainly would not be through conversation with Bunny Briefs. He stretched out crushing some of her flowers under his weight; he knew that he'd hear it from her for committing such a travesty, but he knew that he'd prefer her yapping over her mother's any day. He took a deep breath and peered up at the sky.

* * *

"Why don't you just answer my question," Levi huffed.

"You watch who you're talking to," Vegeta piped. "I'm still your prince."

Levi backed away slightly and looked up at Elten who was sitting perched on top of the sink. He plopped down on his backside and held his head in between his knees. Vegeta rolled his eyes in disgust and unfolded his arms. "If you begin to weep, I'm going to silence you," he threatened.

"I told my mother that I would take care of her," he squealed before throwing himself prostrate on the ground.

Vegeta walked over and placed his heel on Levi's head. "I will got get her, and if your tears aren't gone by the time I come back, I will execute her and then you. Do we have an agreement?" Vegeta felt Levi's head nod in agreement under his boot. "Good."

The only thing left for him to do now was force himself through the duct. From what he could tell Frieza had not yet boarded the ship, and both Zarbon and Dodoria were either masking their ki or they had left the ship.

"This mission should be fairly easy," he whispered to himself. "I am going to get the female because I will not be able to sleep with your whining!"

Vegeta floated up to the air duct and pulled off the grate. He set it back in place once he was inside and began to search for her ki. He floated inches off the surface of the duct and flew in the direction of Azra weary of not to allow his legs to graze the bottom. He heard Azra sobbing loudly as he reached closer to her location. He kicked out the grate and landed in her small brick prison which housed approximately 30 other females around her age. The prison floor was dark, damp and soiled with fecal matter of the inmates that it housed. Vegeta ignored the stench as he surveyed his surroundings. It was obvious to him that these women had already been used up by other soldiers; they looked nostalgic as he approached the far side of the room. All of them peered toward him in silence before cowering to the wall as he made his way through the crowd. The prince wore a scowl on his face as he held out his hand to help Azra up.

"Have you come to rescue me?" she sobbed shakily.

"I have come so that your brother will shut up in my head," he replied coldly. "Rest assured, this is nothing personal. If it were up to me, I would have already forgotten your name."

"Commander said that we should always look out for one another," she replied.

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Are you going to come with me, or are you going to sit there and give me a lecture. I assure you that if you choose the latter, I will leave without you in tow."

Azra wiped the tears away from her cheeks with her forearm and reached for his hand. As he did the door to the small prison slid open. Vegeta slammed his hand over Azra's mouth before she was able to scream. "Do not make a sound," he warned. "We're leaving now.

The women huddled together as the small robot began to scan the room. Vegeta grasped Azra by the biceps and sandwiched her in the corner of the dungeon. The robot left the room after taking its scans and the door locked behind it. He tossed her over his shoulder and floated toward the duct and gently placed her inside. We'll have to fly back toward where we're being housed, be careful to not graze the ducts. If you make a sound, I will kill you, understood?"

Azra nodded in agreement and followed closely behind him. As the two approaced the room, Vegeta peered through the grate to find Levi rocking back and forth on the ground. "Shut him up," he ordered as he removed the grate with his hands and pushed her through the opening.

Levi shot up his feet and tackled Azra to the wall before embracing her. "I'm so sorry that we got separated sister," he bawled through tears of joy.

"Did we not have an agreement?" Vegeta shrieked. He marched over to the both of them and scowled. He held his finger to his lips. "I will give you one more chance," he whispered before turning away. He stalked to the furthest corner of the room and and propped his back on the wall. He watched as Azra tip-toed up to him and smile and mouth the words 'sweet dreams' before returning to her brother. Vegeta shot a scowl to her back; he surveyed his surroundings before something caught his attention.

"Father, what are you doing on the ship?" he asked himself. Vegeta closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on his father's location. He stood to his feet and walked toward the door still in search. Vegeta flinched when he could no longer trace his father's ki. He began to typed in his father's power level on his scouter only to find the readings inconclusive. He returned to the corner in stark realization that his father was no more. He sank to the ground and surveyed his surroundings before allowing his eyes to flutter shut.

* * *

Bulma pulled the scouter from her face and stuffed it into the pocket of her lab coat before her mother came barreling into the room.

"You didn't tell me that you were home dear," she said as she shuffled toward her daughter.

Bulma forced a smile and subconsciously reached into her pocket making sure the scouter was still there. "I screamed guys I'm home when I got into the house," she reassured. "Trunks is probably upstairs in his room, and I found Vegeta sprawled out on my flowers in a deep, sated sleep. I guess dinner must have been amazing."

Bunny smiled as she cocked her head to the side. "Well if you took after my side of the family, you would know how to cook instead of cooping yourself in your laboratory all day making silly contraptions like your father!"

"I think that I'm more grateful for the latter," she whispered under her breath.

Bunny stretched her arms and yawned. "The Doctor is expecting me soon," she swooned. "We're planning to-,"

"Mother, what did I tell you about that!" Bulma warned vehemently.

"Oh please Bulma, you act as if you and Vegeta are the only ones that-"

"No, no, no!" she interrupted. "Thank you for fixing dinner mother, I'm sure my boys appreciated it. The first day of the tournament is tomorrow, and I'm sure that Trunks would want you and dad to come watch him fight," Bulma said as she began to guide her mother toward the door.

"Please come Nana," Trunks hollered from the top of the stairs.

"Well come walk me out to my car and we'll discuss it," she said.

Bulma narrowly threw herself out of the way of her oncoming Saiyan son and smiled.  _My life will never be dull_ , she mused. She returned to the balcony overlooking her backyard and peered down at her flowers; Vegeta was gone. She felt her stomach knot as she thought about the forbidden scouter she housed in her lab coat; she taking a sabbatical from work and wearing work clothes - Vegeta would notice for sure. She ran to her room and threw open the door; Vegeta sat on the edge of the bed, arms crossed.

"Hey Vegeta, what are you still doing awake?" she asked hoping to slip the scouter into he night table while under his watchful eye. His gaze was unwavering no matter which angle she was able to stare at him from. She watched as he slowly held out his hand and scowled at her.

"I believe that you have something that belongs to me."


	4. Kanassa

An unwavering Bulma stood in the middle of the room as she dug her hands deep into the pockets of her lab coat. Her mind raced as she peered toward the balcony. There wasn't any excuse in the world that she could think of to sway his attention; nor was there anything she could have said to convince him that there was nothing that she had to give. Bulma wasn't prepared to give up the scouter so easily; she tip-toed over to the chair and eased out of her lab coat leaving it over her vanity. She made small steps toward him and smiled while wrapping her arms around his neck.

 

"Give it to me," he demanded returning her smile with a scowl. "You have something of mine, and I want it back," he added making sure that she didn't get the meaning confused with their marital affairs. He shifted out of her hold and pinned her underneath him in one swift motion. He grabbed both of her arms and pinned them above her head. She arched and twisted her back in a fruitless attempt of escaping his grip.

"I have no idea what you could be talking about," she laughed nervously.

"I am running out of patience, so I suggest that you comply before you make me even angrier than I already am," he barked in her face.

Bulma had nothing; she used up her only excuse and attempted to seduce him in the process. She squirmed in his grip as she felt his eyes pierce her skin. With his free hand he searched the first pocket of her jeans and pulled out a rumpled brochure detailing the events of the tournament. He let go of her hands and studied the small piece of paper before tossing it to the floor. He reached into her other pocket and pulled out a bunch of screws which he proceeded to throw over his head. Bulma had already begun to perspire as his hand inched toward her back pockets: nothing but credit cards and keys. Bulma wiped her brow with her finger as he began to pat her down; she knew that he'd be able to smell the fear in her sweat.

"Scared woman?" he asked as he inched further toward her face. "I haven't done anything to harm you in all the years that I've been living on this backwater planet," he said in reassurance. "Why would I start now?" Vegeta's lips curled into a smirk the moment he remembered the obsession that women had with using their bras as some sort of storage for small trinkets, and immediately began to unbutton her shirt.

"You call this foreplay?" she asked as she playfully nipped his nose before pulling him in to a deep kiss. Vegeta rose to his knees and glared at her before reaching into her bosom. Nothing. "Whatever it is that you're looking for, I can assure you that I don't have it. Why don't you go check your room," she suggested.

"Now's not the time for me to be playing silly games with you woman," he growled through his teeth. He pushed himself off of the bed and stalked toward the intercom. "Trunks we're going to train. Do not keep me waiting," he warned.

"Yes sir."

Vegeta opened the door without acknowledging his mate and slammed the door behind him. That was indeed a close one; she nearly had her little operation blow up in her face for the simple fact that she was a busybody. Bulma held her hand to her chest and gulped in attempt to calm her racing heart. Night had fallen, and he had gone to get Trunks for one last training session before the tournament; she didn't blame him. He wasn't concerned with pushing Trunks to win the zenni; he was more concerned with him being the best in he world. Bulma furrowed her brow at the prospect of her husband living vicariously through their son; his obsessions, his desires... his blood lust. She shivered at the thought even though she knew that he'd never instil his values in his son.

Bulma peered toward her lab coat and allowed a Vegeta-like smirk grace her features. "He's going to find out sooner or later," she rationalized. "Oh please, what am I saying, that man is far from an idiot, he must know that I have it. What's the worse that he could do to me...yell?"

* * *

Vegeta's eyes opened with the hum of the lights that flooded the room. Elten, Levi and Azra had huddled together during the night time to keep each other warm. Azra had come to him in the middle of the night asking him if he wanted to join them. He'd rather be alone. He wasn't about to be attached to any of them or vice versa. If he kept his distance, they'd know that he meant business.

Azra was the first to wake of the small huddle. She looked over at Vegeta as she began to stretch and smiled. She took her hair out of the ponytail and began to shake it freely.

"You're going to have to cut your hair," he said dryly. Vegeta watched as the girl's eyes began to water. He smirked and closed his eyes. He hated to see tears, he hated the sobs and the uncontrollable convulsions that crying brought about.

"I'm not going to do that," she rebutted. "I'll look like a boy." She self-consciously reached up to touch her scalp and run her finger down the length of her hair. It was her security blanket; it was hers to hide behind when she refused to show her feelings openly. As a matter of fact, she felt like hiding behind it that very second.

"Well unless you want that blob of an alien Dodoria to recognize you and drag you back to the brothel, you'll cut it," he warned.

Secretly, she knew that he was right. He already rescued her once before, and she was almost certain that he wouldn't do it again. She reached up to the top of her scalp and ran her fingers down her hair to the shoulders.

"Will you do me the honors?" she asked batting her eyes at him.

"What do I look like to you?" he snorted looking away from her. "Ask that idiot brother of yours to do it."

"He's sleeping."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and pushed himself to his feet. He made his way over to the two sleeping boys and kicked Levi in his back. There was no way that he'd defile himself by playing hairdresser to the girl.

"What's going on," he cried out in pain. Levi reached behind him trying to soothe the pain. He began to writhe on the floor to itch it instead of rub it. "Why'd you do that?"

"Forget it, the last thing I need is to hear is your whining," Vegeta scoffed. He reached out and grabbed Azra by the hair and held her head back against her protesting. He pointed a glowing finger and began to cut her hair leaving a small bob. He pushed her away from him to admire his work and smirked. He watched a look of shock overtake her face as she gingerly reached up to feel her head. Her hair was a touch lop-sided in the front, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

Levi curled his hands into a fist and caught sight of Vegeta standing near his sister with his hands on his hips. Vegeta grinned and kicked some of the hair that was on the ground in his direction in an attempt to bate him on. Levi bore his teeth and fixed his eyes on Vegeta's as he took a step backward ready to charge. The prince held his hand out welcoming his challenge and readied himself in a defensive stance.

He began to study Vegeta's eyes, expecting an inkling of fear or apprehension, but instead, he saw something more unexpected; he saw an unnerving degree of intelligence staring back at him, almost as if his raw Saiyan instincts were taking over. Usually he'd be excited at the prospect of a sparring match, but he didn't want to commit to anything too serious; Vegeta was his teammate, not his enemy.

Levi backed down and watched as Vegeta smirked in victory. "You're not worth it Vegeta."

Vegeta flicked his hand in dismissal of the boy's comment and turned his attention toward the door as it slid open revealing a short, round, green creature with four eyes; two large ones at the two and the other two regular-sized eyes on his face.. Azra quickly finished stuffing her hair down the sink's pipe and stood at attention. Elten shook away his sleepy state and looked sharply at the intruder.

"Frieza bids your presence," he said to the children.

"Who the hell are you?" Vegeta scoffed.

"You will refer to me as Guldo, a member of the universally-feared Ginyu force," he said striking a pose for the four children. "Come with me," he ordered.

~/~/~

Freiza, the elusive, mystifying, diabolical patriarch of the eastern sector of the universe sat calmly in his hover chair twiddling a small trinket in his hand while looking out into the dead of space. The universe was his to conquer one planet at a time; and now he had even more slaves that he'd be able to exploit to extend his reign into the far reaches of the universe to collect coveted planets and resources. A small victorious smirk graced the tyrant's face at the prospect of more power, and a greater influence on the rest of the universe. "Taking over the universe will be easier than I first thought," he rasped in a barely audible voice.

"Lord Freiza, I've retrieved the children just like you've asked," Guldo said proudly.

"How long have you been standing there?" Frieza demanded.

"We were just waiting for you to finish," he gulped. "I didn't want to interrupt you my lord, you seemed busy." He bowed and ducked out of the room as Frieza turned his head to peer over his shoulder at the children.

"Get over here you monkeys, don't make me speak twice," he ordered.

As the three children rounded Frieza's floating chair, they saw both Nappa and Radditz kneeling in front of the Tyrant. Vegeta made his way over to Nappa and replicated the way he was bowed in front of Frieza.

"Don't look into his eyes unless he addresses you directly, Prince Vegeta," Nappa warned.

Vegeta took note that the usually outspoken man seemed to be attentive; almost as if he knew something that he had yet to find out about his situation. Vegeta peered up at the white lizard and noticed him flipping a piece of platinum outlined in a turquoise medallion between his fingers. It resembled the pendent on the necklace that his father wore over his armor. He dismissed the idea and looked toward the ground waiting to be addressed by the would-be tyrant in lip paint; the exact same thing that his mother would wear when she and his father were entertaining delegates from other galaxies.

"Your home planet is no more. You are now orphans," he said. Not a trace of remorse was found in his voice as he continued to twiddle the medallion between his fingers. He studied their body language, watching, waiting for the slightest hint of remorse for their people.

"It looks to me as if I got a ruthless bunch," he laughed. The medallion got away from him and rolled its way to the prince's feet. As Vegeta opened his eyes and focused on the ornament, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it belonged to his father. The prince stiffened his features yet he found himself reaching out for his father's trinket. He held it in his palm and studied it.

"I don't need that worthless piece of junk, dispose of it after you've left my presence," Frieza spat.

Orphaned.

"Yes Lord Frieza," he said still on one knee. Vegeta tucked the medallion under his armor and pushed himself to his feet. "I would like to have our assignment," he said firmly crossing his arms.

Frieza looked down to the small boy and smirked at his abrasiveness. This one would be a different child soldier, of that he was sure. "And eager to start the day that he finds his planet is gone," he yelped. "But I must correct you young ape."

Frieza opened the door to his floating throne and made his way over the young Saiyans. He took one look at Vegeta before tripping him to his back and put his foot to his stomach holding him down.

"I want to make one thing very clear monkey," he strained as he applied more pressure to his midsection. "When you are in my presence, you will never stand unless you are coming or going with my permission." His tail lashed the ground behind him as he continued to press into the boy's body.

Vegeta refused to give Frieza the satisfaction of hearing him scream as he felt his ribs begin to crack under the pressure; a pain that was all too familiar to him. He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his teeth when he felt the first rib break. His blood trickled down the side of his mouth and down his jaw. Vegeta opened his eyes and looked up at the tyrant defiantly before surrendering a cry.

Nappa stood up and inched closer to the white lizard before kneeling down once more. The boy was his responsibility, his to take care of, if anything ever happened to him that he wasn't able to prevent, he knew that he'd end his life right then to escape the agony of his failure.

"Sire, the prince simply wishes to start working for you at once," he pleaded. "The quicker he starts the expulsion of the races that you request, the quicker you will gain power over the universe."

Vegeta looked over at Nappa from the corner of his eye. He watched the way he clenched his fists in anger at the tyrant, not once looking up as he addressed him.

Frieza – the only creature that would ever be able to command a Saiyan's respect but never his pride. But in that regard, he didn't need to be rescued by him either; he had survived tons of beatings at the hand of his father, and now, he was secretly thankful for them - it made him stronger.

He lifted his foot and returned to his chair. "I didn't expect an ape to possess any brains." He clasped his hands and glared at the boy as he gathered himself. "Well, his father did mention that he took him to purge a planet as practice," Frieza mumbled under his breath.

"I don't know how you ever get your subordinates to listen to you when you treat them so horribly," he spat sarcastically. Cooler leaned on the door casually with his ankles crossed. "This is a prime example of why my empire is larger and much more efficient than yours. I use my threats so that my slaves will work efficiently. You on the other hand have got it all wrong. This is why I should absorb your empire into my own," he said holding his hand out toward the prince who favored his left side.

"Don't make me look like the villain brother," he replied smartly not letting his comments get under his skin.

Cooler phased out and appeared beside his brother. He bent down slightly to his face and mocked him. "I'm going to be the death of you brother," he whispered. "And when you're out of the picture, father will finally see that I should be the sole ruler of this universe."

Immediately Frieza ordered the Saiyans away from him. Prince Vegeta rolled off of the floor and to his feet before being scooped up by Nappa and ushered out the door.

~/~/~

Guldo led the six Saiyans out to the docking bay and closed the door behind them leaving them alone in the room. As much as he was willing to serve his master, he refused to become the object of his torture; that role was reserved for the failure of the elite soldiers. The docking bay was equipped with six pods for the mission, a large screen off to the far corner, and a wall lined with scouters and other equipment.

There was a lone table in the middle of the room occupied by the most grotesque food that Vegeta ever saw, let alone smell. The boy visibly showed his disgust as he reared his head at the display. A definite contrast from the foods he was used to; from there on out, he knew that his sole reason for eating would for nourishment.

He wiped the blood that had run down his cheek with his forearm and winced from the slight pinch he felt in his rib. He slipped off his armor and soothed his rib with his ki.

"I'm telling you Nappa," Radditz said as he bit a chunk into the putrid meat. "The rumour around the ship is that our planet was destroyed by an meteor. My scouter would have picked up a if a large energy had destroyed our home."

Vegeta looked on at the two burly men as they continued their conversation while flipping the medallion in between his fingers. Home destroyed, he faced the stark realization that he had nothing to go back to after he finished his term. He slipped the trinket into his jumpsuit as Azra walked up to him, still sporting the same lop-sided hair from earlier on.

"I have nothing to say to you," he said, trying not to let on to anybody that his left side was throbbing from the pressure inflicted by Frieza's foot; in due time, he knew that his side would heal. He turned his head to the side to try to signal his dismissal of the attempted conversation. Instead, Azra sat beside him and offered him a watery smile. Vegeta looked at her in repulsion before sliding her away from him.

"You know Vegeta, I'm not just all brawn like you...boys." She looked around the room at the male Saiyans and turned back to him. "Don't get me wrong, I can put up a good fight," she said as she slid closer to him once more. "But I can heal wounds as well. My father worked in the medical bay of the castle, so I know my way around the body very well." She covered her mouth and snickered.

The young prince turned to Azra and delivered a vicious backhand to her face knocking the rest of her body to the ground. He watched as she gingerly touched the red blotch that began to grow on her cheek. This garnered the attention of both Elten and Levi as they ran to her aid.

"You watch who you're speaking to, I'm still your prince," he reminded harshly standing to his feet and slipping on his armor. "And you will address and serve me as such!" Whether or not his planet existed, he was still a prince, and nothing would ever be able to change that.

Azra hesitated before cupping her sore face with her palm. She tousled her hair with both her hands and smirked. "It's going to take a lot more than a backhand to shake me," she replied.

"Don't tempt me female," he rasped.

The lone screen in the room turned on and began to orally administer orders to the group.  _Purge scheduled for planet Kanassa, seventh quadrant; purge scheduled for planet Bihe seventh quadrant; purge scheduled for planet Zoon seventh quadrant. Time alloted for the purge: One month, one hour. Planetary information will be uploaded into your pod computers._

"That seems reasonable," Nappa said looking at Radditz. Both men pushed themselves off the wall and stretched. "What's that, about one week's distance?"

Radditz shrugged while grabbing an extra scouter from the wall; with the children in tow, he made his way up the ramp and to the pods.

"Just like that," Elten rasped. "This is what we'll be doing?" He self-consciously reached up and ran his finger down the scar on his face.

"Shut up and get into the pod," Vegeta piped. "Why can't you fools just take orders without questioning everything?"

The boy brushed past all of them and walked onto the platform. He entered his pod and watched as the others followed his lead.

"You are a Saiyan, now carry yourself as such!" Vegeta growled toward Elten.

The boy surveyed his surroundings before he eased himself into a more comfortable position. As small as the pod looked from the outside, it told a different story from the inside. It was complete with a touch screen detailing different parts of the galaxy, an intercom system for communication with the rest of the team, and even a hook for his scouter. He reached to the bottom part of the pod and opened a small box that contained extra equipment. He commanded the pod closed and pressed the screen for his first destination.

"Hey Levi, do you think that Commander Cole made it off of the planet?" Elten asked in concern.

Vegeta reached out and muted the intercom system. He was in no mood to hear his squad mates, nor did he want to interact with them for that matter. The boy peered up toward the red button on the ceiling of the pod and reached out for it slowly. Not yet knowing its purpose he pushed it and was ambushed by a cloud of gases that led him into a sated sleep.

_~/~/~_

Vegeta cracked open his eyes and watched as his pod orbited around planet Kanassa. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and un-muted his intercom only to hear the bickering of the three other Saiyan children. He growled while moving forward toward the small window to get a better view of the planet.

The one week travel time had already eaten a chunk of the time that they had to purge the planets. Vegeta sighed in relief that the rest of the planets were within the vicinity. He rested his head back on his seat as he felt the pod being pulled into the planet's atmosphere. Vegeta grabbed unto the bottom of the seat while squeezing his eyes shut bracing himself for impact.

Vegeta opened both of his eyes and ordered his pod open. He stepped out into the barren terrain and surveyed his surroundings with the scouter before climbing out of the crater. The other Saiyans were already out of the pod staring at the readings that scrolled rapidly on their scouters. He clenched his fists in anticipation for a good fight; he had been on one purging mission prior to Kanassa with his father after the death of his mother.

Levi made his way over to Vegeta's side and folded his arms. "You've done a purge before?" he asked in a pensively. It was more of a statement rather than a question.

Vegeta looked at him from the side and noted the seriousness in his voice and nodded. "My father took me to planet Tasba. It had been cleared of the civilians. We went to clean out the military," he replied coldly. "No wonder the mission on Tasba took so long. If I had it my way, I would have taken out the military first," he said laying out a strategy with his Saiyan counterpart.

"When the military is gone, you'd have no resistance," Levi finished.

Vegeta let a smug smirk overtake his features as he clasped his hands behind the back of his head. "Exactly," he said. Vegeta walked back to the edge of the crater that his pod made and put his hands on his hips. "Well what are you waiting for?" he asked the rest of them as he floated up to the sky.

He activated his scouter to pinpoint the largest power level he could find within the area. According to the scouter the power level was coming from directly beneath him. Vegeta cocked his eyebrow and looked below his feet. He descended back toward the ground and looked toward Nappa and Radditz.

About ten feet away from them he watched as the alien appeared behind them. The yellowish-green colored insectoid stood at almost twice the height of both men. It took one of its antennas in its hand and began to twirl it around his finger. He caught their attention with the hum of his wings.

"Kesh. Kesh Toolo is the name. We've been expecting you," he said startling both Nappa and Radditz into a defensive position. "You're kind has come to our planet before your home world was destroyed, and now you are here again."

Vegeta didn't feel right about the situation; how could the alien know anything about the situation while residing on the planet that wasn't even in the same quadrant as his own. Granted, the explosion must have been quite the light show, but it wouldn't have allowed him privy to which planet had been destroyed. For all he knew, it could have just been a dying star going out in style.

"What do you know of Planet Vegeta being destroyed?" Vegeta asked. "Do you read minds?"

The alien bore its fangs and a wide smile as he crossed his arms. He stared down at both Nappa and Radditz before peering over at Elten. The black-haired boy crouched down into his defensive stance and readied himself for battle.

Vegeta adopted the same stance and stared right back at him. He knew something, of that he was certain; and there were two things that he could do to him: kill him, or beat the truth out of him. The latter would be more beneficial of course.

_"_ I'm not the one you should be wary of," he said pecking his head in Elten's direction.

Vegeta made a mental note of the alien's words and looked over at the boy from the corner of his eye. He had never liked Elten, he just couldn't be trusted. He was too quiet, he was always looking at him weirdly; either it was just aimless staring, or Elten was plotting something against his life. And now, with the alien's confirmation out of either an innate fear for Saiyans or out of sheer insanity, he now had a reason to dislike the boy far more than he already did.

Vegeta's eyes wondered over to Elten's black tail as he cocked his eyebrow up. There was only one reason for his tail to be such an odd shade, he must have been mixed. A Saiyan's tail will always be brown regardless of the coloring of their hair.

"The military," Levi interrupted. "We want to know the location." He stood poised to attack upon hearing an answer that was less than favorable to his ears.

Then insectoid held his head high and proudly refusing to answer Levi. He stubbornly crossed his arms and bore his teeth.

"That's not how it's done kid. Here lemme show ya," Nappa said phasing behind the much larger alien. He placed a hand on his back and twisted his wing out of place instantly rendering him to his knees. He pulled his head back by his antennae and twisted his neck to face him.

"Lesson number one, when they don't want to listen the first time, always use force during the second round," Nappa said. "Why you might ask; because you already gave them a chance, and if they refuse to do things the easy way, we then have to resort to doing things the hard way."

"And let me tell you, it gets a lot messier when we have to do things the hard way," Radditz chimed in.

Levi nodded and walked over to Kesh, squashing his initial politeness. Picking up where Nappa left off, he pulled the wing off the alien which sent him into an instant frenzy of blood-curdling screams. He didn't stop there, he grabbed the antennae as he saw Nappa do and twisted them.

"The military," he demanded. Levi pushed him onto the ground and stood over him.

"Promise me that you will live me in peace once I have told you the location," he whispered.

Levi nodded his head in agreement and awaited his answer. Gingerly, Kesh pointed toward the direction of the military base and held his down. "My brothers said that you were coming for us."

Vegeta walked over to the alien and pushed Levi out of the way. "Then I guess they must have told you that you would die by my hand as well," he said lifting up a glowing hand toward Kesh's face.

"Prince Vegeta, what are you doing I promised him that we'd spare his life," Levi cried grabbing his shoulder.

Vegeta turned and punched Levi in the stomach before he placed his foot on Kesh and pushed him further into the ground. "If I can recall correctly, I'm not the one who made that promise," he said smugly as he fired. Kesh's lifeless body fell to the ground despite Levi's protests. "You're a sorry excuse for a Saiyan," he said before floating up in the air. "Now if you excuse me, I'd rather not waste the little time that we have left on conversation."

~/~/~

Vegeta and the others made quick work of the weak military and made it back to their pods without incident. He sat in the lonely crevice of his pod in silence with the intercom muted once again. What was he becoming? He slipped off his glove and rubbed the blood on his index and middle fingers with his thumb. The smell of rust filled the pod and it irked his stomach in disgust. He could have kicked himself for not cleaning up before he got into his pod, but for some sickening reason that was beyond his five-year old brain to understand, it didn't feel foreign to him. How had he become so cold? Vegeta sighed and rubbed the blood off of his hands into his hair in a feeble attempt at making them clean.

His father drilled it into him; the fighting, no mercy, trust no one...and there was no way that he'd be a disgrace to his royal lineage. He would do as his father asked of him; it would have been his dying wish as their planet was destroyed.

"I was sold for the freedom of the Saiyain race... a freedom that will never be," he whispered to himself. "Destined to be a slave until the day I die."

He knew that whether he liked it or not, he'd carry on. With every battle he fought, he would become stronger and stronger; it was in his genes. It would be up to him to avenge his fallen race, and just about every other species was going to pay for fate's mistake.

Vegeta knew that his Saiyan race lived for the thrill of the hunt; to track down their prey without remorse and to eliminate them. It was done with the utmost finesse and poise; but now, he was simply rendered to be nothing more than a mindless killing machine obeying Frieza's every beckon, every whim. And with the power of Oozaru form at his finger tips if needed, murder would then become mechanical for him. He had only seen a full transformation once, and his father executed the soldier for lack of control.

"More fights equal more power," he sighed looking up toward the red button. "I determine my fate." He reached above his head desperate for the gases to render him unconscious from his plaguing thoughts.

* * *

Bulma felt Vegeta's side of the bed cave in as she slipped the scouter off and placed it in her night table. Her husband fell to a comfortable position on his back and clasped his hands behind his head. He was upset, and Bulma knew it; and if she tried to glaze it over with purposeful stupidity, he'd get suspicious.

Es swa tali?" he asked angrily not looking at Bulma while addressing her.

"I don't know anything," she replied sharply. Bulma slammed her hands to her mouth and dug her face into he pillow. She had slipped, and he had definitely caught on to the rare mental lapse.

She held out her hand to him before peering over her pillow at his face. He still hadn't moved; he hadn't even acknowledged her physically. Bulma took a deep breath into removing the pillow and turning over to him. She didn't want to play games with him in case he was willing to talk.

"I should have asked you before I did anything," she said in remorse.

Vegeta smirked at the easy victory. "Answer my question," he demanded.

"I know that your father beat you mercilessly," she began choking back tears. "You were only a child. And then your mother..."

"When a Saiyan fights, or is physically injured we become stronger," he said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "He did all he could to give me more strength."

"But your father killed her, and you say nothing of it. You don't even mention her name. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Say nothing more of her," he spat harshly. "You will offer me your pity. Then you deem there to be something mentally wrong with me before rendering me brain dead with your mindless babble about the way I was raised," he said sitting upright looking down at her.

"Do you hate him?"

Vegeta returned her question with a cold glare before folding his arms across his chest. He should have destroyed the scouter years ago. The content it housed no longer meant anything to him. As he peered over to his mate's night table, he knew that he had broken a cardinal rule; he kept memories. His mother's necklace, the scouters, the pendants... His thoughts were interrupted as he watched Bulma cower behind her pillow.

"No," he stated plainly, uninterested in giving her anymore information. He looked away from her before continuing. "He did what he did for a reason." There was a pregnant pause before he continued. "Had he not done what he'd done, the Queen would have been assigned to the brothel, or passed around by the elites, he knew this much."

"I guess you don't want me to watch the rest of it do you?"

Vegeta bore his teeth and peered down at her. "If I don't let you watch it, you would endlessly question me about my life," he said through his clenched teeth. "Like you're doing now."

Bulma's eyes lit up at his answer happy that she'd no longer have to sneak around the house with his scouter. She had to admit, it would have gotten increasingly harder if she had tried to bring it to the world martial arts tournament under wraps. She watched as he fell quiet and looked toward their balcony.

"Vegeta, I just want you to know that whatever I see on the scouter, I won't judge you for it. I'll love you no matter what," she said looking up at him from her pillow. "Nothing that you did in your past will ever make me stop loving you."

She watched as her husband contemplated her words before turning to address her.

"When you are finished, destroy it," he ordered.

Vegeta turned over and pinned her underneath him. Bulma felt a finger on her lips before she could rebut. "Do we have a deal little one?" he whispered in her ear.

He hadn't used that nickname for her since she was pregnant with Trunks, and she had to admit, she kind of missed it.

"Making up for earlier I see," she whispered as she felt a trail of kisses down her collarbone. "If I knew that I was going to be in for a sleepless night, I would have taken a power nap."

She felt him smirk at her comment. "It's not like you're going to be doing all the work."

"Touche Vegeta... Touche."


	5. Breath, Eyes, Memories

_"In war, truth is the first casualty" is a quote by Aeschylus (not by king Vegeta) and "It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles." - Machiavelli_

 

* * *

 

Play.

* * *

Bihe had no military, no advanced structural engineering, no real population, except for the Mouma; it was cold and barren. What Frieza would ever want with a planet like that was absolutely beyond the young boy's comprehension. The Mouma had been eating tunnels all throughout the planet which rendered it useless unless Frieza planned to establish the place as a trading post, or a junkyard.

The battle itself wasn't very hard; the Mouoma were resistant to their ki blasts and there was only one way to remedy the problem: Oozaru form. Seeing that the Saiyans weren't able to use their energy, they could always fall back on their brute strength; the Mouma never stood a chance.

Vegeta leaned forward to look out of the small window of the pod. The gases weren't necessary; the rest of the assignments were located in the seventh quadrant. He used them to escape his thoughts. He smirked as he readied his pod to be pulled into planet Zoon's atmosphere.

"I'm already one of the most feared people in the universe," he laughed to himself even though he had only helped clear two planets worth mentioning. His dark humor was all that kept him company on his journey. The impact of the pod jarred him back to his senses and he commanded his craft to open.

The whistling winds carried the grey sands of the planet in circles rendering the visibility to almost nothing. Vegeta stepped out of his pod and made his way over to Levi and drew his fist back and pushed it into his stomach.

"The next time you openly question me, I will take your life," he rasped through his clenched teeth. The two older Saiyans looked on in silence at the boy's disciplinary action. Although he was younger than themselves, he was still their prince.

"Prince Vegeta, if I may interject -," he gasped. "I gave Kesh my word that I would spare his life. You made it seem that I lied to him." Levi forced himself to his feet holding his stomach. Despite his armor, Vegeta still managed to create a small rift.

"In war, truth is the first casualty," he began as he activated the power level reading on his scouter. "True words spoken by the king of Saiyans himself." The prince turned in the direction of the readings and cocked his brow in bewilderment. To his surprise, there was no significant power level reading anywhere on the planet. Not that he was upset at that, but he could have used a challenge before returning back to the mother ship.

"We're on a planet full of civilians," Elten informed as he slicked his black hair behind his ears. "My technological expertise allows me to hack into the systems of other planets when done correctly." Elten paused and looked at his shorter superior before continuing. "There is no active military on this planet, only guardians. But they won't be much of a threat."

"Then I guess that means we'll have more than enough time to get back to Frieza's Hell hole," Vegeta replied snidely as he began to trudge through the sand. His ears picked up the subtle sounds of a roaring ocean. He stalked to the edge of the sandy cliff and jumped. subtle proof that he was still just a child. He caught himself just before he hit the water and began to fly in the direction of the city. Nappa followed closely behind him followed by Radditz and the others.

~/~/~

Vegeta was the first to arrive and hovered just above the city contemplating how he'd get everyone out of the buildings. Destroying the city's structures wasn't a problem; the problem was finding the people that hid from them, which always made the job harder. It wasn't that he was lazy, he enjoyed the thrill of the hunt as any other Saiyan would; but they had a time limit that they had to adhere to. He was certain that he did not want to spend more than a week purging the planet; after all, it was made of mostly civilians.

Nappa stopped beside him and smirked. "This is going to be fun," he said as he tossed a ki ball up and down. "Listen up brats, class is in session. The trick is to make the blast large enough to draw out the crowd, but small enough so that you don't haze your vision with debris."

The children looked at him and nodded showing their attentiveness. "When the civilians come out of the buildings, it will be harder for them to use contraptions that will be detrimental to our livelihood," Azra stated. "It will then give us a clear shot at our prey."

"Big words for a child," Radditz noted. "Who was your caregiver?"

Azra nodded not knowing whether or not to take the statement as a compliment or an insult. She formed her own ki ball in her hand and threw it to the ground making a crater. This created an instant frenzy amongst the town folk as they poured out of the buildings. Each of them chattering amongst themselves about what the commotion was all about. Azra strategically placed another one on the other side of the city drawing more attention as the smoke rose to the sky. "Fasha," she replied. "Her name was Fasha."

"She was an honorable soldier under Bardock," Radditz said as turned his attention toward the people scattering below.

"I know," she said as she fired yet another blast, this time placing it in the middle of the city.

"I think that we should play a game," Vegeta said changing the subject. If he was going to be doing this for the rest of his life he'd might as well make it fun. "Body count. The person that racks up the highest total, will keep a portion of what we loot."

"Prince Vegeta, you and I both know that the only thing that can fit in our pods is ourselves," Levi informed as he tried to illustrate the rough size of the pod interior with his hands.

Vegeta turned to Levi and raised an eyebrow at his idiotic comment. Surely the boy couldn't be this stupid; he even began to rethink the boy's initial level of logic... it must have been lower than he first anticipated. His lack of common sense knowledge would be a definite downfall on the battlefield.

"We take currency in the form of credit you fool!" the prince spat harshly. "The game starts now!"

Vegeta descended onto the frenzied crowd coming face-face-face with one of the civilians as he hovered. As she turned to run her efforts came up fruitless when she felt a tug on her hair. "Where do you think you're going?" he piped as he sent a beam through her back. Her lifeless body fell to the ground in a heap as he touched down next to the woman. Though dead, she stared back when he looked down at her.

He heard some of the Saiyan elites say that when one died with their eyes opened, they deserved it. Even though he didn't believe in those silly superstitions, he still wondered. Then again, he had to close his mother's eyes - so it couldn't have been true. But from what he knew, there was always something unnerving about when a person died with their eyes opened. Vegeta came back to reality as he shook his head from his thoughts and watched as the people stampeded by him; some, stumbling on their way as the mass exodus began. Vegeta took off running against the crowd taking out everyone that was in his direct line of sight as though he were a raging bull. He stopped and entered a nearby building in the metropolis and watched as the people cowered behind the shelves and machines. The boy smirked and backed out into the crazed crowd and began to fire at the building's foundations.

Vegeta kept backing up and watched as the metal at the bottom of the building began to contort. He looked up as he heard the metal beams of the structure begin to snap. He held his hands outstretched to his sides as the tall structure began to fall toward him.

Levi looked on in bewilderment and began to run over to the prince. Azra tackled her brother who had already fixed his sights on Vegeta. "Are you crazy?" she screamed. "Damn Levi, after mother died, you're all I have left," she cried straddling his stomach. "Don't be stupid on the battlefield!" She clenched her fists and punched him once in the eye.

Vegeta looked over at their exchange and held his hand above head and blasted a clear hole through the building as the rest of the wreckage fell around him. He floated through the hole toward the sky and gathered up his ki in his hands; the electricity snaked up his wrists as he fired the blasts like a turret below at the fallen building. He cut through the billowing smoke and down to the ground and caught another fleeing civilian by their garments. "Hey Nappa," he cried out as he leaned back with his weight and spun in a circle to gain momentum. "Catch!" he finished as he released the man in the Saiyan's direction.

Nappa clasped his hands together like a sledge hammer and made contact with the man's body, shattering every bone on impact. He caught the man by the ankle before he fell to the ground and threw him back toward the direction of the boy. "Alley-oop," he hollered. Vegeta held onto his wrist before firing his ki into the civilian. The stocky man held his hands up in victory before proclaiming his dominance to other civilians by way of disintegration.

Vegeta smirked at his assist and calmly made his way to another bulding despite the mass exodus of the population. Paying no regard to Nappa's 'lesson' earlier, he took down yet another building creating a dusty film hazing his vision. He powered up and began to fire aimlessly into the fray. An airborne Elten cut through the dust hurling in Vegeta's direction with the utmost finesse. He held out his arms and unleashed two beams that passed on either side of the prince taking out two burly-looking men. He couldn't control his momentum and fell to the ground rolling toward the running prince. Vegeta jumped over his rolling body easily evading him and slid a few feet in the sand. Still slightly blind from the debris and dust, Vegeta turned to the direction he thought that Elten was in.

"Watch where you're going," he screamed into the grey wall of nothingness.

The prince's reply was a sharp blow to the head with a blunt object. His body fell to the ground, limp from the sudden paralysis. He gingerly grazed his finger across his forehead to survey the damage. He clenched his fists in anger and began to beat the dirt underneath him. The long bar appeared in front of him once more, this time he reached out and caught it before it reached his head. He pulled on it toward him viciously and a small boy no older than ten fell to the ground next to him. Vegeta took a power level reading of he boy before looking on him in contempt. The boy took off running in the direction whence he came leaving Vegeta wishing, but never openly admitting, that he had listened to Nappa concerning unnecessary debris during purging. Then again, the only reason he took a cheap shot to the head was because of Elten's foolish little exhibition; he came out of nowhere and caused him to temporarily lose his focus.

Vegeta shook off his pain and rose to his feet. He looked in the direction the little boy ran and fired a blast in that direction. His acute hearing picked up a small yelp ensuring that the job was complete. Slowly, the prince rose to the sky to survey the damage. One main metropolis was gone - only a few more to go. He directed his attention to Radditz who had the lone guardian of the city hoisted above his head. Wearing a maniacal smile, he threw the man even higher than he already was and began to count how long it would take him to hit the ground.

"Fifteen seconds," he called out clearly enjoying his sadistic little game. "That's a new record Nappa."

Visibly upset, Nappa returned to the ground to retrieve another civilian. The young woman squirmed in his grasp as he floated toward Radditz. "Of course I can beat fifteen seconds," he informed before propelling her into the air.

The prince retrieved his own pawn from the ground and joined the elder Saiyans. "My turn," he informed. The boy's bright blue aura surrounded him as began to spin gaining momentum as he similarly did when tossing a civilian over to Nappa. He released the man with everything that he had. He held his hand over his eyes and watched how far the man traveled into the sky. Both Nappa and Radditz waited for Vegeta's pawn to reach it's apex. "Well would you look at that," the prince began. "It's been seventeen seconds already. I guess you can call me the victor of this game."

The older Saiyans rolled their eyes at the young prodigy; the legend concerning the young boy was that he would be the first to ascend and free their race from the tyrant that was Frieza... What race does the boy have left to avenge? His strength was rapidly rising with every battle he fought - surely he'd surpass Frieza in strength someday; but until then, their strength and cunning wisdom in battle would be diminished to nothing more than unintelligible genocide.

By time the man came back falling to the ground, Azra, Levi and Elten had joined them in the sky. Nappa powered-up and turned toward the young soldiers. "Now lastly, to complete the purge of this metropolis, we will usually incinerate the rest of the buildings." He looked around to make sure he had the children's utmost attention. "Now once the buildings have been incinerated, we will then cover a five to seven mile radius of the city to ensure that nobody has escaped. Your scouters will aid you if you come to any heavily forested areas." Once finished with his mini speech, he concentrated a large amount of ki in his two fingertips and flicked them upward toward the sky. The children watched as he instantly incinerated any evidence that would prove that the once heavily populated metropolis had been bustling with life.

The five year-old prince refused to be impressed by his incineration trick twice. He had seen it already when he went on his first purging mission with his father on Tasba. He felt the blood trickle down his forehead and wiped it off immediately; unfortunately for him, Azra took note of his small injury.

"I will take both Prince Vegeta and Azra and fly out five miles and circle the eastern to the southern quadrant. Radditz will go with Elten and Levi to cover the western and northern quadrants," Nappa dictated.

Vegeta wiped the blood trail down from his forehead before scaling the perimeter with Azra and Nappa. As the three circled their assigned perimeter in silence, Vegeta couldn't help but notice each and every time Azra looked back at him in concern.

"What are you looking at?" he finally spat venomously. The boy scratched as his wound irritably. How in the world had he managed to get sucker punched with a bar was beyond him, but he knew that he wouldn't stoop as low as letting Azra get satisfaction out of helping him out. Nappa spotted a few expected stragglers and descended to the ground to meet them leaving the two children up in the air. Vegeta turned his head from her and continued to cover the perimeter thus signifying that he was in no mood to strike up a conversation with her. Azra followed him a few meters back, searching the ground as well.

"Prince Vegeta, I already owe you for saving me back on Frieza's ship," she called out to him.

Vegeta stopped in the air and turned to face her. "What do you want?"

"To fix the gash on your head." She inched closer to him and reached her hand out to remove his bangs out of the way.

The young prince stubbornly evaded her reach and continued his assigned path. "I've had worst," he informed her secretly referring to the many beatings inflicted by his father's hand.

What was it with her; did she not understand that when he said 'no' he meant it? He glanced back at her irritably; there was no doubt in his mind that she would prove to be a thorn in his side while on purging missions. To him, it seemed that she may have developed a liking to him; it was either that, or she just felt eternally indebted to him for saving her life. Whatever the case, he found it thoroughly annoying and wouldn't deny the thought of ridding her from his presence into his mind. He had heard Nappa and Radditz talk about their experience with women many times in the past in the training facilities with other elite soldiers; even though he didn't readily understand all of their explicit conversation and descriptions, he was certain he'd make it a point to understand once he reached Saiyan maturation... Just not with her.

Vegeta's eye eventually caught onto the movement of a group of wanderers and fired at them from the position in the sky. He wouldn't waste his time by taunting and playing sadistic games with them as Nappa and Radditz had often done; quick and efficient would be the monotonous motto that he'd swear to live by for the rest of his days.

The prince muted his scouter as his thoughts became muffled by screams; it became obvious to him that Radditz and the others had found a few stragglers and part of him resented that he wasn't there for the action. He ran a gloved hand through his thick mane as he finished circling the perimeter and pressed his small palm to his pendent; she'd keep him sane and guard his heart through all of this... he was sure of it. Radditz, Elten and Levi came into view as they finished their extermination of the perimeter; the blood on their armor made it evident that they had run into stragglers.

"Nappa," Radditz called out. "According to the scouter, we've got four more cities to clear before we have to report back to Frieza." Vegeta could see the concerned look on Radditz's face from where he hovered. Was Frieza really one to be feared as much as the two older Saiyans made it seem?

Radditz and the others continued to fly over to the rendezvous point. One city down four more to go. Nappa wiped his hands over his face in exhaustion. "We will travel to the next city to be cleared, get nourishment and rest, and then we will clear the city," he suggested. "We will split up in the morning two-by-two. This way three cities will be down within one day and we will rendezvous and clear the fifth and last city."

"How could he allot us so little time to clear all these planets," Radditz spat angrily.

Nappa ignored Radditz's complaint and turned his attention to the readings scrolling down the scouter. "The next major metropolis is fifty miles due North," he said pointing in the said direction.

Vegeta looked up at him as they landed on the ground to replete their diminished ki; the mindless brute possessed half of a brain after all... although he didn't make it evident when he talked without reason.

"Well I am quite hungry," Levi spoke up looking in the direction of the recently depopulated city, the smell of flesh filling his nostrils. One-by-one each of the Saiyans left in the direction of the new city for some much needed nourishment.

~/~/~

Night had already fallen on Zoon and the Saiyans feasted on the animals they had hunted that night. The hunt itself was exhilarating; Vegeta proposed that they hunted without the aid of their ki to make it interesting - and interesting it was; Vegeta was nearly injured as he wrestled away a young calf form its mother. He spent enough time in the palace to know that young meat was often the most tender... or so he thought. He even dove into the ocean to retrieve an unusually large fish, which Nappa originally deemed as a whale. Azra, Elten, and Levi had even gone off to capture a family of calves while Nappa and Radditz tended the fire. They then used their ki to slice and dice all of the meat.

Vegeta had been grateful for the meal; he hadn't had much of anything since he was put into Frieza's custody; while in the loading dock, he came satiated off of the grotesque fumes that the putrid meat gave off. He picked up a log and heaved it into the fire while Nappa watched on. They agreed to stay awake in twos and guard the camp against any impending threats; even though the planet had nothing to rival their level of strength, they had might as well gotten into the habit.

Nappa began to tend to the fire with his ki as he made the flames dance up and down with his fingers. "There is one thing that you must always member Prince Vegeta, your father, the king, would have told you this if were still alive" Nappa eased back on the ground and looked toward the stars. Whether he liked it or not, he was the boy's father figure now despite the obvious power and status differences. "It is not the title that honors men, it is the men that honor the title. Above all else, you have your Saiyan pride, protect it as you would yourself on the battlefield."

Upon hearing this, Vegeta nodded and held his hand over the royal crest of his family. Knowing that the words came from his father made him gush with inward pride for no one to see but himself. He would not dishonor his fallen comrades, even if he had to pay with his blood. He was a prince, royal blood coursed through his veins as it did through his father and his ancestors before him. His name was Vegeta, prince of the Saiyan race, and it was up to him to honor that title which was bestowed on him through birth until the day he died.

"I will not disappoint my father or my ancestors," he stated as he continued to look into the fire.

* * *

_"I was beginning to wonder when you were going to turn that foolish contraption off,"_ he spat in his native tongue as he lay on his stomach propped up on his elbows. He turned away from her and reached down at his discarded shorts on the floor.

"Well now I know the reason for your cockiness," she said. Bulma sat up bringing the sheets with her to cover herself. She placed the scouter on her night table gently and eyed his back hungrily; a view that she would never grow tired of indeed. She watched as he pulled on his shorts and made his way to the washroom.

"Can I ask you a question Vegeta?"

"Hn."

Vegeta flinched before stopping dead in his tracks and turned around to face Bulma. What was it with her; the fact that he allowed her access to the scouter was monumental, and now she wanted to bring things up that she didn't readily understand in hopes of a clearer answer from none other than himself. His childhood was not something that he'd readily talk about, and he would have thought that she knew that.

Bulma squirmed under the intensity of his glare and tried to muster up the courage to ask him the question which he would most likely deem as stupid.  _Do you love us?_  She knew that the silent question would always be one that would remain unanswered verbally; he proved it daily with his actions, but after eight years... Even if he whispered it into her ear with nobody around, that was all she'd need to be satisfied. Just once...

"Spit it out already," he snapped. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned on the doorframe of the bathroom.

"Have you taught Trunks your native tongue," she covered-up quickly.

Vegeta crossed his feet and stretched to grab the top of the doorframe. "Yes, he is fluent... And you're a horrible liar," he informed before walking inside.

"Do you love me?" she whispered under her breath.

Just before he shut the door, he had heard every word that she muttered under her breath. From what he could tell, he had been doing just fine in his duties as both a father and a husband. If he wanted to leave, nothing would hold him back from doing so; as a matter of fact, he would have been gone years ago had it not been for his honor. He wasn't just going to up and leave his own flesh and blood; that type of behavior was reserved only for cowards. Kakkarot's face simultaneously appeared in his head as he thought about abandonment; that blasted idiot hasn't even met his youngest brat. If she hadn't seen how he displayed that he cared during all their years together, some tumultuous, some smooth... then she truly was an idiot. What the hell else could she have possibly wanted from him... His life?


	6. The Slave Catcher's Song

* * *

Vegeta stared into the white tiles of the shower as he had done so many times in the past; they've remained the same, it was absolute, unchanging, constant. Why couldn't everything be like that? Static. Why was she always expecting the impossible from him. He had given her everything he had; his unchanging devotion. He finally blinked as the water beat down his hair past his shoulders. Why couldn't his life go back to the way it was, when the only thing that he had to care for was himself. He faded into his thoughts as he closed his eyes.

* * *

Play.

He hated Freiza with everything that was within him; and it still wasn't enough to kill him, at least not yet. He would work tirelessly for his slave driver, delivering unto him planet upon planet and it was never enough.

The boy turned over on his back and clasped his hands behind his head; he couldn't find rest, no matter what position he found himself in. This wasn't exactly the life that he had envisioned for himself as a boy; Even though he was still only five, he had grown into a man with the aid of both Nappa and Radditz.

He sat up and peered over to where Elten was comfortably perched atop a tree keeping watch over the camp. He pointed his finger at the base of the tree and began to carve into it using a ki beam and brought the tree down. Elten remained suspended in the air arms crossed offering Vegeta the worst glare that he could muster. The prince turned over in the grass holding his stomach in laughter.

"You should see the look on that ugly face of yours," he mused.

Elten was unimpressed but refused to play into Vegeta's little scheme;and it took every fibre of his being to not throw out all resolve and attack him where he lay. Instead Elten opted to find another place to rest his head, and that was away from the prince.

Vegeta rose to his feet and walked toward the fallen tree and settled himself right beside it. He cupped his hands behind his head and stared up at the empty space in the sky; it was one of the most unhealthy attachments since his mother. The planet that he should have been one day destined to rule was no more, and that was thanks to the meteor that took his home away.

Cruel fate.

Azra stirred in her sleep before she shoved her brother's leg off of her stomach. She took a deep breath and wiped the sleep from her eyes and peered over at the prince. There was no doubt to anybody that the prince was indeed a loner. Many of them knew that he confided in only one person; his mother; and now that she was gone, he would definitely need somebody to fill that void because it would be unhealthy to keep all of those emotions pent up.

Right?

Azra cautiously rose to her feet and made her way over to him; she knew that she had tread much too close to him in the past and nearly paid for it had it not been for the intervention of Nappa. He said nothing as she sat next to him against the fallen tree. She didn't want to be the one to initiate the conversation.

An irritable Vegeta turned to glare at her; what was with her relentless pursuit of him. She was soft; he could see it in her eyes. He crossed his arms and turned away from him hoping that she would be able to take a hint and leave him be. But she sat there, expecting, hoping, wondering whether or not he'd utter the first words. Little did she know, he wasn't going to make the same mistake twice; relationships were nothing but unhealthy attachments.

The boy put his chin down to his chest and closed his eyes. "What do you want?" he asked finally giving in.

Silence was the loudest reply that he'd ever come to know as a child; and that was the exact reply he received. His haughty temper knew only one thing because of his impatience, so he shoved her to the ground.

"What's your problem Prince Vegeta?" She forced herself back into a seated position and leaned back on the fallen tree.

"You're my problem," he replied wearing a smug smirk. "Ever since I have met you, you see it fit to try to attach yourself to me as though I were your father. If we were back my planet, you would not even be considered worthy enough to be in the same room with me."

"And yet here we are, working for man who wears lip paint, hunting for our own food, sleeping in dirt, no planet to call our own -."

"My own," he corrected.

"Fine, your own," she said playing into his little game; she knew the longer that she could keep him talking the better. And the only way to keep the hot-tempered prince talking was to agree with everything he said; an off-balance trade that seemed to work well.

"I'll have my own planet to rule when I'm older, just you wait and see," he said with his nose stuck high in the air letting a chuckle escape from his lips.

"And will I be your Queen?"

"Most definitely not," came the snide reply. He promptly got up and walked away from her. Just who did she think she was; as if he would enlist the help of a woman to "help" him rule a planet.

"Well wouldn't you at least like a friend?" She continued to prod despite his dismissal of her. "Every time I would visit the castle with my mother, you'd always be by yourself or clinging to your mother."

This time she struck a nerve and in one fluid motion, he had her pinned against the fallen tree. He pressed his forearm into her throat and watched as she desperately tried gasping for air.

"Nappa's not awake to save you this time female," he hissed silently. "I am going to tell you this once, because like my father, I don't like repeating myself. Don't you dare bring my mother into this. If I hear you or your foolish twin even utter the syllable to her name, I will kill you where you stand, do you understand me?"

Azra forced herself to nod in agreement. When he let her go her hands immediately shot up to her neck to soothe the ache. She had been totally caught off guard.

Vegeta scoffed at her before walking away. What was with that female anyways. Always following him around, prodding into his personal life with questions as thought he could explain everything in the grand universe... He paused and subconsciously felt his chest to make sure that his necklace was still there. He had to get rid of this unhealthy attachment, or it would cloud his mind on the battlefield, he was sure of it.

The boy swiftly tapped a few buttons on his scouter and peered up toward the night sky. The subtle humming of his space pod was unmistakable as it made it's way over from their original landing zone. He pressed another button on his scouter this time making the pod hover right in front of him. Vegeta took off the blackened necklace and whipped it into the pod and commanded the door shut.

That would be the end of that chapter in his life. He knew that he couldn't take her with him for the journey that he would embark on. Another tap on his scouter and he sent the pod away to the original rendezvous point. The boy fell to his knees and fought back the urge to weep before falling into a sated sleep.

Never let them see you cry.

~/~/~

As Vegeta opened his eyes his scouter activated and various power level readings began to scroll down the small screen. The young boy didn't miss a beat as he read each and every reading aloud awaking his Saiyan counterparts.

"It looks like somebody is preparing an army for us boys," he said as he cupped his hands behind his head.

Radditz was the first to roll over as the mass of power level information began to scroll down on his screen. "Just great," he began. "I knew that we should have finished what we started before we give them a chance to recuperate."

"There's nothing that we can do about it now," Vegeta said as he rolled onto all four and stretched out his legs. "This will be a fun exercise," he piped.

Levi and Azra began to wipe the sleep from their eyes as their scouters began to scroll out information as well.

As the self-proclaimed tactician of the group, Vegeta immediately began to dole out orders as Radditz tried his best to equally split the leftovers of the food from last night's hunt. He thought himself to be a professional after months of shadowing his father to distant planets before his own training began.

"We will split up in teams of three," he began. "Radditz, you will take Elten and Azra with you. And Nappa and Levi will accompany me."

"Spare nobody," Nappa chimed in. "Frieza doesn't like when he has to deal with loose ends."

The group nodded and headed out to clean up the rest of the civilians.

* * *

Trunks peered up at his ceiling and discarded his sheets in dramatic fashion. It was tournament day, and he was determined to win as proof to his father that his attitude wasn't at all slack. Trunks stood in the middle of his room and began his morning stretching.

For a child, his room could have effortlessly fit the Son's house and still have room for a yard. He knew that he didn't need the money; therefore he concluded that he'd use it to bribe Goten after his impending victory. It was way too easy to manipulate the young boy into doing what he wanted - especially when it concerned pulling off pranks; granted, majority of the brilliant ideas came from his intellect.

He snickered as he remembered the time he replaced a harmless ingredient that he found in a beaker in his grandfather's lab with nitroglycerin. The next day, the poor scientist blew up the entire wing of the lab. His little prank resulted in his mother paying one of the most hefty worker's compensation settlements in the history of the country. Goten was dismissed from the crime but as for him, he spent a solid month in the gravity being disciplined accordingly by his father. But that little prank was eclipsed when he went to the zoo with Goten; the two had plotted for days how they were going to slip past the security and take the lion back to the Capsule Corp. headquarters. Trunks snickered at his thoughts and continued his lounges. It was an epic prank; he nearly sent his grandfather into cardiac arrest when he came to get him for his afternoon tutoring session in electromagnetism. Sure the harmless stunt landed he and Goten a lifetime ban from the zoo, but it would be forever cemented in prank history...so in the end they both figured that it was worth it.

Trunks paused as he heard a hand on the doorknob and watched as blue bop of hair poked it's way into the cracked doorway. His smiling mother pushed open the door and made her way into his room with a wrapped box in hand.

"Are you ready for the tournament Trunks?" she asked making her way over to ruffle his hair.

"Yes, I've been training in the gravity room non-stop with father," he said as he swiftly dodged her hand.

"Trust me I know," she said looking at the carpet. "You two leave me in the house to myself all-day long."

She watched as her son flashed her a subtle grin; definitely a carbon copy of his father when he did that. "I actually came here to tell you something before you take part in the tournament today little guy."

Bulma took a seat on the edge of of his bed and patted an empty space beside her. "I actually want to tell you about your father."

Trunks didn't let on his excitement to his mother as he heard the word 'father', but he couldn't help that he was slightly with the idea of hearing a little bit about his father's past. He had heard him mention prince numerous times, a prince of a planet that was no more, and he knew that he had done some pretty terrible things in the past, but his father could adapt to survive any situation. He had never bothered with asking about the matter; as far as he was concerned, his father was only interested in training him to be the strongest, possibly to one day eclipse him in combat. Trunks opted to lean against the window sill, one foot bent back propping him up; he folded his arms and held his head down letting his bangs flow into his face.

He most definitely is his father's child. Bulma smiled at him and began with what she knew.

~/~/~

Vegeta stepped out of the shower and dried himself with his ki before stepping into his bedroom. This tournament was going to be a waste of his time, he could feel it. The only reason he wanted to go was so that he could humiliate Kakkarot in a public venue to prove once and for all that it was him that was the strongest. Not to mention beating Hercule would be the icing on the cake; he wanted nothing more than to silence the idiot permanently; and if it weren't for Bulma and Gohan pleading with him otherwise, the World Champ would be no more.

Vegeta pulled on his blue jumpsuit and tracked down his son; he was in close proximity to his mother. He concluded that she was most likely giving the boy the whole "no matter what I'll always be proud of you" speech. Though he'd never admit it himself, he was very proud of how his son was progressing; his boy showed more potential than he did when he was that age, and it made his chest puff with pride.

Bulma whipped open the door and ushered Trunks out into the hallway.

"If you're late for check-in, your father is going to be livid," she said as she tossed him his bag. "I'll meet you in the kitchen," she called out.

He threw the bag over his shoulder and floated down the stairs as he pulled on his boots. His father had his usual scowl plastered across his face as he worked on a stack of pancakes and eggs in front of him. Trunks took his seat at the table and began to wolf down his breakfast.

Five minutes later, Bulma joined them for breakfast dressed in a red hip-hugging short dress with a yellow scarf wrapped around her neck. She was beautiful and she knew it and definitely was going to flaunt it at the tournament.

"I will not be responsible for my actions if any man stares at you haughtily," he informed.

The compliment made her smile. "I will be out of sight and out of mind to everybody until Trunks comes on to fight," she replied sweetly as she tried pinching her son's cheeks.

With a straight face, Trunks swiftly avoided her hand. Focus was definitely going to be his word of the day; he refused to fail. Sure Goten was his best friend, but inside the ring he would prove to be his arch nemesis as he was the only one in the tournament that would ever come close to his level of combat. Not only that, he wanted to show his father that he didn't spend all of his time training him for nothing.

"I know that face," she said playfully. "Your pretty focused on winning aren't you?"

A silent nod was his only reply.

"Well just know, that no matter what place you come in, you'll always be a winner in my eyes," she encouraged.

Vegeta took a big gulp of orange juice before he had a chance to choke on his breakfast. That kind of attitude that the woman displayed was one shown when you expected the person to lose. And his son was no loser, of that he was sure.

"Save that speech for the loser of the tournament, also known as Kakkarot's spawn," he spat as he slid the plate on the counter in her direction. He snapped his neck toward Trunks and motioned toward the front door. The young Sayian nodded a goodbye toward his mother before following hot on his father's heel.

Bulma watched as her family walked out the door. "I guess I'll meet you two at the tournament," she called out to the empty doorway.

Vegeta ushered his son out into the yard and pulled the timepiece that Bulma gave him out of his pocket. With check-in for the junior athletes in less than an hour Vegeta took the lead and flew into the sky uncaring for whoever saw him. Despite hearing his mother's insistent voice in his head that told him 'never fly in front of civilians you'll scare them', Trunks took off in hot pursuit of his father.

Bulma peered over at the clock on the stove she had almost three hours until the actual tournament began.

* * *

Play.

"I'm warning you my prince, you shouldn't undermine Freiza like this, he's not going to like it," Nappa warned. "Frieza said that he was going to handpick his slaves."

Vegeta ignored him as he threw the young woman on her knees and removed the sack from her head.

"I'm not taking her with us Nappa," Vegeta chided with his head slightly turned to him. "The woman had a request. Now leave us."

Radditz cocked his eyebrow over his scouter looking straight at Nappa whose reply was nothing more than a shrug of the shoulders.

The young woman cowered as Vegeta inched closer, his gloves stained with dirt and blood smeared across his chest armour like a badge.

"Don't you dare touch me," she screamed. "You...you... you murderer!"

Vegeta stopped five feet away from her. He wasn't a murderer, not by choice; he was a slave whose only aspiration was to be free from this torment. Vegeta pulled his hand back and slapped her hard across her face.

"Shut up," he hissed. "Not a word out of your mouth." Vegeta tapped his scouter to get a clear reading of his surroundings. "I've done what you've asked, now tell me where he is."

"Your father commanded us to keep him safe, when we heard that you were coming, we sent him away, far from harm."

"He is my brother."

"I know who sent you," she whispered changing the subject which easily distracted the boy. "He's travelling planet to planet making slaves out of those who remain. And I see he's gotten to you, barely a child." She peered off to the side. "I'd rather choose death then to face life as a slave for the rest of my days." She pulled out her pistol and pointed it at him. He looked down the barrel knowing that nothing that it held would ever be enough to set him free. He inched closer toward her and pressed his forehead against the barrel. She pulled it away and held it toward her skull.

"Wrong way," he corrected, "if you're looking for an instant death then I suggest you hold it toward your temple or below your chin at an angle.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she peered toward the sky soaking in the beauty of one last sunset before pulling the trigger.

"What was that about?" Radditz shot telepathically to Nappa.

Nappa shrugged his shoulders while looking on at the woman's body. Vegeta turned and walked toward the others dusting off his hands, "That's the last of them," he called out to Nappa as he checked his scouter to make sure there were no stragglers. He watched as Nappa called a rendezvouz back to the pods so that they could prepare to leave the planet. Azra stood silently by knowing that the prince was affected by the woman and she was determined to get to the bottom of it.

Vegeta scanned his chip with his scouter, checking the balance on his account: C1,475,394. He smirked at his gain; he had enough to purchase a small planet on the outskirts of the galaxy. Frieza was never concerned with their personal gain unless it directly interfered with his; therefore the Sayians were free to plunder as wanted. Each Sayian filled their galactic credit chips before leavings; it always proved useful when stopping off at planets and space stations enroute to the next assignment.

Vegeta climbed into his pod and commanded shut before removing his scouter. He turned it to his face and stared into it, the boy was worn, it was evident in his eyes. He placed it beside him and peered down at the lifeless shell of the young woman losing himself in his thoughts.

There was no escape from the slave catcher's 


	7. Bully

Bulma hurried over to the tournament venue, she had been so caught up in watching the contents of the scouter she lost track of time. She had already readied herself appearance wise, but choosing a car to match her outfit would prove to be harder than she expected. She had finally settled upon a red car to match her dress and yellow scarf, she decided to take one of her planes just in case - considering everything that she had been through throughout her life, she knew that she should always prepare for the worst. She threw on a pair of sunglasses and hurried out the door.

**~/~/~**

Trunks and Goten awaited impatiently for their turn to test their strength at the punching machines. Before they stood in line, they had all agreed with the adults that they would not display their true power in fear of breaking the machine.

Trunks stood beside his best friend arms crossed, eyes closed, head slightly down allowing his purple bangs to fall in his face. He was going to win this tournament to prove to his father that he was serious about his training. Goten clasped both of his hands behind his head waiting patiently for his turn to come.

"Goten," Trunks started with his eyes still closed, "You and I both know that we shouldn't be in this kiddie tournament, we should be in the adult tournament."

Goten nodded his head in agreement. "It's a shame that we won't be able to get into the adult tournament though."

Trunks' head shot up and a sinister smirk crept over his face. He had an excellent idea, but he wasn't going to reveal it to his Saiyan counterpart just yet, it would prove to be quite the distraction, and to be frank, Trunks wanted a good fight in the finals. As soon as the junior tournament was finished, he would reveal it to Goten.

"Who invited you losers," came a voice behind the two Saiyans.

Trunks kept his eyes forward ignoring the boy, but for Goten it proved to be a challenge as he whipped around.

"That was pretty mean," he scolded before turning to his friend.

"Don't worry Goten, if one of us draws this guy we'll be sure to silence him."

Trunks and Goten nodded in unison as they moved closer to the punching machine.

"Idasa's the name, I should give each you little losers my autograph because when I win I'm going to be the most popular junior fighter in the world."

Trunks rolled his eyes and chuckled to himself in the line. He silently hoped that he would draw the boy just to teach him a lesson.

"Now remember Goten, softly so that we're not paired together in the first round, we need to make sure that both of us gets to the finals."

Goten threw his head back and laughed, "Don't worry Trunks, I plan to flick it."

As the line moved along Trunks couldn't help but ponder what his mother had shared with him earlier about his father. He knew that the prince wasn't as open as his mother and spoke only briefly about his past with him. He never mentioned anything about never anything about his planet, his parents, or what he had been doing during his early years. One of the only things he said was that he was a prince and a soldier in Frieza's army.

When they got to the front of the line Goten looked over his shoulder at Trunks and offered up a subtle nod before taking a step to the machine.

**~/~/~**

Vegeta folded a napkin with the utmost precision to place on his lap before the meal. He and Goku were polar opposites when it came to any sort of decency. He ate just as fast as his Saiyan rival but not nearly as messy.

He loved a good meal, but his mind had been elsewhere. After all his training, he finally had the chance to humiliate his rival, and in a public venue. Beating Kakkarot would finally empower him with the pride that was stolen from him the moment that he crawled back into his pod to leave Earth all those years ago. The satisfaction of his foot perched atop Kakkarot's head in victory made his chest puff slightly. He smirked before pushing an entire leg of ham into his mouth sucking the bone clean.

"I'm so sorry I'm late everyone," Bulma said while rushing into the room.

Goku finally looked up from his food and waved happily. Had he not been sworn to silence by Vegeta while he had food in his mouth he probably would have showered his friends with bits of rice. He quickly swallowed his food and offered her a hug.

"I knew you'd make it," he said cheerfully.

"I know, it's been a while Goku, seven years to be exact."

A light-hearted chuckle escaped from his lips before stuffing more food into his mouth making it impossible for him to answer coherently.

Her friend was never really present in his two sons lives. She remembered the look on Chi-Chi's face when the dragon told them that he refused to come back, leaving her to raise her Saiyan sons on her own. When Vegeta gave her his word that he'd never leave their son or her it set her soul on fire. It was the kind that she read in fairy tales and saw in movies as a child, the kind that she relentlessly searched for as a teen, the kind that she had longed for when she was with Yamcha, and the kind that she knew that couldn't be satisfied with all the roses and 'I love yous' in the world. His unwavering devotion to his family was the way he let her know, and only she was privy to it.

"What are you staring at woman?"

His attitude shielded his true feelings, but only she knew that.

" I was actually wondering why you are all in here eating and not in the seats that I reserved in the stadium?" Bulma asked checking her watch

"Why don't you ask Vegeta?" Krillin asked while he stacked his third empty plate.

Almost immediately, the prince's glare shot to Krillin.

"What was that Eighteen?" He asked trying to send Vegeta's attention elsewhere before ducking out to the room to find his wife.

Bulma glared over in Vegeta's direction and he refused to make eye contact.

"Well is anybody going to fill me in on what happened to the punching machine?"

"We all agreed to suppress our strength in order for the machine to give a fair reading, but when it was Vegeta's turn, he destroyed it," Goku said nonchalantly, "But don't worry it was a complete accident."

Bulma looked over at her quiet husband once more trying to get his attention, but once again, he refused to acknowledge her. She doubted that it was an accident, he always had something to prove, and for the others to tell him to suppress his strength probably made him want to show it off all the more.

She didn't want to admit it, but there were still parts of himself that he clung to, and that's what scared her. She thought as though if he had gotten what he truly desired, he'd throw her and his son by the wayside.

She immediately shook her head of her thoughts, 'He's not like that anymore,' she said to herself pushing those thoughts to the back of her mind. She knew better than to demonize the man she loved in her mind.

"But don't worry it's replaced now, the juniors are having their go at it downstairs right now," Chi-Chi said snapping Bulma back to reality.

With her attention averted Vegeta pushed his chair back from the table before whipping his napkin down into his empty plate and heading out to the balcony. It wasn't long before he felt Bulma join him. A lengthy silence ensued before he began to get restless.

"Is there something that you want?"

"I just want to talk, that's all." She extended her hand so that it was curled around his bicep.

"I allowed you to watch the scouter for this very reason. I will not answer any questions. Just know that you will not like everything that you see on there, you've been warned woman," he said pulling away from here.

"Just communicate with me, I want to hear it from you not -"

"How much of me do you want? Haven't I given you enough?" He interrupted. "Whatever I give to you, it is never enough!"

"I want all of you Vegeta, the good, the bad and the ugly," she replied softly.

"You don't know the extent of my bad," he spat.

The conversation felt like deja vu, Bulma's eyes glazed over as she remembered.

* * *

Bulma looked upon the man that she both loved and hated at the same time with teeth clenched and fists balled. She eyed him carefully so that her fear wasn't on display.

_How dare he, how dare this man refuse to acknowledge his own flesh and blood. How dare he try to continue living under the same roof as us and not even acknowledge that we exist and that we mean something to him. He didn't even make an attempt to save us when Dr. Gero attacked our plane._

"Why isn't he your priority, I don't care if you ever have feelings for me Vegeta, but I'll be damned if I ever let you treat him like he's just another person!"

Vegeta wasn't going to entertain this conversation out on the open lawn of her parents' property. He didn't even dignify her with an answer, he just turned and walked away. His actions made her seethe all the more as she sped after him.

"What are you running from, everything that you need is here with us!"

Vegeta began to grind his teeth. He was his everything and that fact was changing. The universe no longer revolved around him as he was used to. His static frame of mind was slowly succumbing to the friction of her kindness. He swiftly turned around to address her catching her by surprise.

"It's not what I'm running from," he screamed, grabbing his hair violently. "I fear nothing and I run from no one! It's what I'm running to. Every little thing I've done has been calculated, planned, reviewed then executed. I've always had an answer, a rebuttal... something. But now, I do not have a plan for how to combat this situation."

"Vegeta, sometimes we don't get to review everything in the methodical precision like you do, I didn't expect to be thrust into motherhood so soon, but guess what I'll deal with it and I'll continue to do so with or without you!."

"I'm a killer, I don't rear children, therefore you will be doing it without me."

"You're not bad anymore," she reassured him as she closed the gap between them.

"Woman, you don't know the extent of my bad. The type of evil that lies dormant in my bones is the type that you cannot simply remedy with kindness. Your light will never be able to overcome my darkness."

"Vegeta I know you, perhaps better than you think you know yourself. In spite of your darkness, you've always possessed a light that you've been forced to suppress and now you're afraid to let it out."

He made no attempt to stifle his chuckle, but she willed herself to continue.

"I'm not going to beg you for anything."

He turned around and continued his beeline over to the shaded area near the trees and took a seat at the base of the trunk. And to his luck, she followed him once again.

"So much for the 'I don't beg spiel', he snided.

Instead of playing into his game, she sat right in front of him and stared into his eyes. She knew that when she wasn't yelling, he usually replied with a dignified answer fifty percent of the time.

"Vegeta, you piss me off like no other but I want to meet with you, I want to meet with the real you."

A lengthy silence ensued between the both of them, but Bulma stayed silent in hopes of him finally providing her with a response that she could work with.

Vegeta closed his eyes and turned his head to the side before letting go a sigh of resignation.

"He no longer exists, and it's been that way for a very long time."

* * *

She shook her head from her thoughts.

"Geez, you're a bit edgy right now because of your impending battle, but if there's one thing that I do know, it's that you've changed."

"Have I changed woman, or have I suppressed?"

He watched as his words broke her and did nothing to piece it back together. She knew that it wasn't true, he was only trying to aggravate her.

Vegeta climbed the balcony rails and jumped down to the bottom. He had to get away from all of that. His son would be fighting soon, and he was absolutely positive that he would win against Kakkarot's spawn. After Goten's defeat it would be his turn to embarrass Kakkarot in front of the masses.

He eventually found himself at the competitors entrance to the fighting platform. It was closed to the other competitors by security, but after witnessing what he did to the machine they were too afraid to stop him from coming in. He was thankful that the tournament was running a bit off schedule. It allowed him to think without the constant bustling of people around.

He crossed his arms and leaned on the door frame before closing his eyes deep in thought.

* * *

Play

* * *

Vegeta found himself in Frieza's Command Center, it was cold and unwelcoming as he watched the shadows of the tyrant's servants dance on the walls as they tended to his every desire. The room touted wall-to-ceiling windows that allowed him to look out upon the expanse of the universe. The young prince always had his head down when in Frieza's presence. He stared back at his reflection, noting that his boyish features were hardening under his master's regime.

"Monkey, you were given the simplest of orders, and you failed. Now I have to send the Ginyu Force to clean up your mess," Frieza said with his back turned looking out at the stars.

Vegeta was kneeling on one knee with his head facing the floor, listening to his master's verbal assault of him. If possible, he always came to confront Frieza by himself, he welcomed the pain that the tyrant would inflict upon him, it was his drug of choice. The more pain that he received the more stronger he became, so he took the punishment on behalf of the whole unit. But this time was an exception, Frieza requested the presence of Azra who was kneeling behind Vegeta, strands of her brown hair falling into her face.

"You see monkeys, the universe is mine for the taking, the only reason why you and your maggot Saiyan counterparts are still alive is because I don't want to do the dirty work myself. It just seems that I can no longer employ competent warriors around this galaxy anymore."

Vegeta bit his tongue. He had learned from experience to only speak when Frieza had asked him a question, but he couldn't help himself sometimes. The last time he spoke out of turn he was beaten to an inch of his life, and that wasn't even including the punishments that he received on behalf of his unit.

"What do you have to say for yourself apes?"

Vegeta flinched at the term. His pride would've had him beaten within an inch of his life than to be called an ape or a monkey. Vegeta bit into his tongue until he tasted blood in his mouth, he tried with all of his might to not let his tongue go. If it had it would cost him his life. He swallowed his patented brew of saliva and blood and opened his mouth to speak.

"We did not anticipate the level of retaliation that we received. When we purge we split the planet into two parts, east and west. The population of the middle retaliated, they were dealt with easily but a few escaped. To fix the mistake we have since begun to split the planet into four parts in order for equal coverage and to minimize the chance of stragglers getting off of the planet," he replied.

As soon as Vegeta had uttered the last syllable he was in front of Vegeta with hand wound up in a fist behind his head. "Wrong answer monkey," he said as he struck him.

The boy's body flew across the room like a rag doll. He forced himself on all fours before standing to his feet. His master delivered a swift kick to his chest knocking him back to the ground. He straddled the boy and beat him until he began to cough up blood. Vegeta made sure that the only sound that he made in front of the tyrant was that of him spitting his blood out of his mouth and his ragged breathing. The only way that he could get to Frieza was by refusing to submit to him.

Azra trembled for her Saiyan counterpart but stayed still never once breaking eye contact with the floor.

"Watch me destroy your prince," he called over to Azra, but she refused to move. "I said watch," he bellowed maniacally.

Her eyes were jarred from the ground and she looked at Vegeta, eyes swollen and bloodied, hemorrhaging from his ears, eyes and nose. So this was how it was going to end?

Frieza picked him up by his throat and began to pound him into the window cracking it. He continued his assault on the prince permanently imprinting his small frame into the thick glass and grunting into the child with each and every hit.

As the glass began to crack the alarms of the ship began to blare, causing the young boy even more pain to his already sensitive ears. Vegeta forced his eyes open for a split second to look upon his attacker, the look in Frieza's eyes was that of pure bliss. The boy's pain was his ecstasy as he continued to pound him into a bloody pulp.

Frieza stopped when he realized that he had made a small hole in the window with the boy's body. He held Vegeta against the glass before letting him slide down to the ground leaving a streak of blood as evidence of what had just transpired.

Azra looked upon the prince of her race in absolute horror, he wasn't recognizable, she took off from her place running to his aid.

"When will I be able to give you a perfect score for purging? Perhaps you'd like to study under the Zarbon on one of his purges," Frieza suggested with a hint of condescension.

He had always been trying to get Vegeta to conform to his rule, but the young boy wouldn't have it. His body was willing but his pride refused to fall in line with Frieza, and the tyrant hated him for it. He could barely muster the strength to answer him, but with all his might he opened his mouth once more.

"The rumour around the ship is that Zarbon likes young boys..." Azra covered his mouth with a gloved hand before he could finish.

"Do you have a death wish?" She whispered.

The young boy began to laugh uncontrollably in her arms and began coughing up blood in the process, "Wouldn't death mean freedom?"

"That's too easy, freedom will only taste good when it's earned," she whispered.

The sadistic tyrant calmly walked back over towering over the two young Saiyans. He cocked his head to the side asking Azra a silent question and received no response. With that he grabbed her by her ponytail and flung her across the room away from the prince.

"I don't recall myself telling you that you can move. Do you?" He said as he floated his way over to her.

"No, my lord."

"I don't think I told you to address me either." Frieza phased out and appeared right in front of her. He pressed his foot into her ribs and applied pressure until he heard her bones begin to crack. Her screams echoed throughout the room as she writhed underneath his foot.

The louder she screamed the more pressure he applied, it wasn't long before she began to cough up blood. He gripped her head, lifting her up to eye level and rapidly continued his assault on her ribs.

Vegeta watched through his swollen eyes as Frieza relentlessly beat her unconscious before dropping her.

And as if it were her saving grace, the screen on the other side of the room suddenly began to began to flash to life.

"Baby sister, when are you going to learn that you play too hard with your toys, it won't be long until you break them... permanently."

Cooler's term of endearment for his brother made him seethe inside. If there was one thing Vegeta knew Frieza hated more than him, it was his own brother.

"Grr-, shut up!" Frieza screamed toward the screen."

Cooler smirked at his fuming brother. "Father would like to have a word with you, now get rid of your toys."

"Monkeys, you have thirty seconds to get out of my sight, or I will kill you both where you stand."

Frieza calmly walked back over to her before kicking her in her ribs making her body inadvertently seize.

With blood dripping from his head, Vegeta quietly forced himself on all fours and crawled over to Azra's unconscious body. He was close enough to hear her blood bubbling in her throat and he knew right away that her lungs had been punctured.

He grabbed one of her arms and slung her over his shoulder before wrapping his tail around her to keep her steady. With all of his might he forced himself to his feet and shuffled his way toward the door.

Frieza had not yet finished with his twisted game, he fired a ki beam toward the prince's feet knocking him off balance. He refused to let go of his partner knowing that one more fall and it would've sealed her fate. A Saiyan deserved more than to die on the cold floors of this ship.

Once more Vegeta willed himself out of the room, barely able to see through the caked blood on his swollen eyes. He sent out small pulses of his ki so that he didn't bump into anything. His pride kept him from hitting his scouter to call Nappa to carry her so that he was able to walk on his own.

The young prince was relieved that the medical wing was empty, he eyed the only regen tank in the wing with a solemn expression. It was either him or her. He set her down on the ground before removing her cracked armour. The cemented blood flaked off of her hair as he pulled it over her shoulders. He looked at her deformed torso and used a bit of his ki to rip the jumpsuit off her. She didn't receive half the beating he got, but opted to put her in first anyways, the more he was able to heal without the power of the tank, the stronger he became.

Wearing only her Saiyan ID tags, Vegeta summoned the last of his strength and hoisted her into the tank before closing it and pressing start.

"I am going to kill him one day," he said to her as the tank began to fill with regeneration fluid.

His Saiyan blood had already begun the healing process on him and for that he was thankful. He slightly opened one of his eyes to look at her. He would never understand what Nappa and Radditz babbled about after they came from the floor of the ship affectionately dubbed the 'red smoke.' He recognized and matched some of the anatomy that they raved about to certain parts of Azra's body.

"I'll never touch that," he snided.

He shook his head at the sight of her body and ambled over to one of the basins. He removed his scouter and set it on the stand behind him. He removed his bloodied armour and threw it aside before beginning to wash the blood off of himself. He methodically scrubbed through his tall mane washing the blood from it before gingerly rubbing the blood off of his face. As soon as Azra was finished with the tank he needed to use it, they were scheduled for another purge the next day.

The tapping on the glass caught his attention and he whipped around to see a conscious Azra staring back at him. He shuffled over and watched as she instinctively covered her body. He stopped the machine so that she could exit.

Her wet hair was matted to her back and dripping on the tiled floor. She immediately dried herself with her ki and began looking for a fresh jumpsuit and armour.

"The last thing I remember was being knocked unconscious by Frieza, how did I get here?"She asked as she pulled open every door in the room in her search.

"Nappa was summoned and brought you here," he lied.

"Then where is he?"

The young prince offered up a glare in response. "On the Red Smoke floor with Radditz, now get out of the way, the faster this is over the better. I need to be one hundred percent before the next purge." He began to cough up more blood upon finishing his sentence.

Azra's search proved to be fruitful as she pulled on her jumpsuit, boots and armour. She walked back over to the tank and started it for him. He ignored her and closed his eyes as it began to work its healing power on his body.

**~/~/~**

The tank stopped once his body was fully healed. The prince looked around for Azra and thankfully, she had left him to himself. He noticed the new armour and jumpsuit that she laid out for him in front of the tank and scoffed.

"I wish this girl would leave me alone," he sneered before picking them up and pulling them on.

The young prince grabbed his scouter and made his way over to his quarters. The room was hidden from the rest of the ship, that was the boy's first priority after he killed a commander in order to stamp the room as his own. The only way in was through one of the air ducts. He didn't want to be found easily by anybody, not even his Saiyan counterparts. He had the door replaced with a steel wall without Frieza's knowledge, he bribed a few of the technicians in the armoury to build it for him while Frieza was away tending to 'family matters' as he put it. Vegeta knew that it was nothing more than Cooler bullying him into submission, what he would pay to see that happen in his lifetime.

He paid each of them in the credits that he had plundered from the planets that he had purged. If he was going to be a slave for the rest of his life, he might as well make his room comfortable if he going to be on the ship for extended periods of time. After Frieza's, it was one of the premier quarters of the ship. Akin to Frieza's command center, the room featured a wall-to-ceiling window on one side of the room, and was carpeted with the best furs that he could find while on purge missions. He had gone down to the trading floor of the ship and brought a large screen and had the security features installed so that he was able to see who was passing outside of his room, who lingered around, and who became suspicious of his whereabouts. Even though the team had done an excellent job in concealing their secret, he was still careful.

He stood near his window looking out at the universe, but even in all it's openness and no matter how far from the ship he would find himself, he felt like a caged animal in an endless sea of black. He placed both of his hands on the window cloaking it to look like just another steel wall of the ship, another plus from the tech team, his plundered credits came in handy. He leaned against the wall losing himself in his thoughts.

He killed. He plundered. He mutilated. He stole. But in his defence, he knew no better. He was brutalized into submission, forgetting all that was once understood about decency as he descended into his debasement. A child groomed to murder deserved some mercy too, right?

It didn't come easy, it was something that he had to get used to. He was bred to fight, not to kill mindlessly as his master had him do.

Vegeta was a groomed killer, forgetting all that once was of his princely decency. It was defunct, he only used the title as his pride, by no means was it his lifestyle. Growing stronger after every battle, he kept telling himself a little while longer before he surpassed Frieza in battle. He would avenge his bloodline and take his rightful place as the hegemon of the universe. Little did he know, he'd be telling himself that for a long time, but he promised himself that nobody would break his pride in who he was and who he was destined to be, it was simply a detour. He ambled over to his the bed and took off his scouter. He looked into it once more before turning it off.

* * *

"Bulma!" Chi-Chi cried out, "Would you turn that contraption off, the tournament is starting.

Bulma pulled the scouter from her face and dropped it into her purse.

"And where is your husband?"

"Wherever he is, I'll doubt he'd miss Trunks' fight, they've been training non-stop, and even though he doesn't show it, I know that he's proud of him."

Yamcha joined the two women on the balcony and wrapped his arm around Bulma. "Hey, do you mind telling me why you were wearing that vintage scouter?" He inquired.

"It's just a way of me calculating the power levels of those Trunks will be going up against," he lied.

_"Attention ladies and gentlemen, please focus your attention to the ring and welcome our fighters!"_

Bulma looked at Chi-Chi and Yamcha before racing off to their seats.


	8. Tarble

Vegeta sat precariously upon the top of the stadium with one knee pulled up to his chest. An announcement jarred Vegeta from his thoughts; soon the fighter's entrance to the arena would be flooded with children, which was why he quickly made his exit, but not toward the seats that Bulma had reserved for everybody. He didn't care for the company, nor did he care for the junior tournament but he wasn't going to miss any of his son's fights; he'd simply watch from the shadows.

He looked over to the section of reserved seats and saw Bulma's blue bob and chuckled at the fact that she fashioned her hair after his son's. Even though he hated to admit it, he had grown fond of them. He never declared his promises to anyone, however he promised himself that he'd never let harm befall her or his son.

But that declaration didn't come easy.

At that instant, the memory of the future version of his son being impaled by Cell's beam invaded his mind. He had attacked in a blind rage but he and his pride was beaten in once again. It was that event that made him realize that he cared about his family. And he was uncomfortable with that prospect; in his mind he had become soft. Kakkarot's smiling face immediately came to his mind.

Vegeta cocked one of his eyebrows up. He had become softer than Kakkarot, and the idiot wasn't even there for his family. That irked him. Having something or someone to care for made him weak. He dug his hands in his hair and let go a ragged breath. How had this happened? When had it happened? Why did it happen?

His eyes found Bulma once more. He didn't deserve her, and the more she watched the contents of the scouter, she would come to that conclusion as well.

**~/~/~**

Bulma knew that her husband's behaviour wasn't out of context, he hated crowds, noise and children, not in that order. She sighed and began to look around for him. She wasn't surprised that he was nowhere in sight.

She looked over at the electronic board displaying the schedule; Trunks was going to be the fifth battle. She looked down at her brochure and began to fill the names into the brackets for each fighter.

"Trunks versus Idasa," she said to herself. "I'm sure he'll make quick work of him."

Just as she finished her sentence, a burly blonde women pushed past her knocking the brochure out of her hand as she took a seat right beside her.

"Hey watch where you're going, or else," she threatened.

The lady simply stared at her before turning her attention to her friend who had saved her a seat.

"My Idasa is going to wipe the floor with this 9 year-old kid," she said excitedly. "I'm just dreaming of what we're going to do once we win that prize money!"

Bulma began to silently seethe to herself.  _'Oh please, My Trunks can beat that boy blindfolded with both hands tied behind his back.'_

The woman continued. "And as a matter-of-fact, I don't even think they should allow the kids under ten to compete in a tournament like this, they should be up in the stands with their parents admiring my Idasa," she gushed.

Bulma thought that she was going to be sick to her stomach. And just who does this woman think that she is. She couldn't wait for Trunks' match to begin so that she could watch him wipe the floor with the boy.

**~/~/~**

Vegeta watched his wife from the stadium tower; she had taken on his mannerisms and he had taken on hers. He smirked as he watched her stew in her seat; it was only a matter of time before she blew. Even though she lacked the physical strength to defend herself, she feared nobody. He couldn't figure it out at first, but it was what drew him to her; she was the only one able to tame him and she knew it.

"Attention all spectators and participants, I once again ask you to please turn your attention to the ring and meet our youth division fighters for this afternoon!"

The cheers of the crowd bellowed as the junior division fighters began to file out of the tunnel. Vegeta immediately caught a glimpse of purple as his son walked to the ring looking focused and determined.

All but 2 junior division fighters filed out of the ring in preparation for this first match. Vegeta held his head back and sighed as he patiently waited for his son's turn.

* * *

_Play_

* * *

Planet Gelbo

He didn't know where he was, only that he was returning from the darkness of the abyss that had tried to claim his life. With eyes shut, his natural survival instinct was the only thing that he was sure of. He used it like a rope, pulling himself self hand over mental hand back from his torment. He had been at death's door once too many times, and he knew it. He had had this feeling before, from the pain he wore like a badge to the sharp familiarities of his situation; cold, dark, alone.

The sixteen year-old knew that he was taking a huge risk coming the planet. It was against Frieza's orders, and that was reason enough to never deviate from the plan. He enticed Azra to accompany him to another planet. Back on Imecka, the pair snuck away while Nappa slept. They were ambushed before their pods had the chance to land. Most planets began to implement increased defensive measures as a way to stand against Frieza and his regime, and as such they had almost been killed before the battle even began.

Vegeta shuffled toward the opening of the cave in which he spent the night and forced his crusted eyes open. Pain ambushed him with the return of his sight as he fell to his knees and spread out in the dirt. He sniffed out the nearby stream and dragged his body toward it for water. His head thundered. Every inch of his body cried out in pain as he continued his seemingly long journey toward the water. He gave one final push and dipped his left hand into the stream.

The boy watched the water around his hand turn to rust. He cupped some in his palm and brought it toward his mouth gingerly. He patted his palm on his cracked lips. The boy's mouth was gummed shut. He reacted in panic forcing them apart resulting in pain. Vegeta turned his head and spat into the grass; he made a second attempt at scooping some water into his dry mouth. His unsteady hands proved to be no use as he dipped his head into the stream and began to suck the water into his mouth. Vegeta persisted until his thirst was quenched. He lifted his head to look at his reflection. His hair had been matted with dirt, his face had a clear ring around his mouth from the water.

He had been separated from Azra before he even landed on Gelbo. It appeared as if the planet's defenses were not as primitive as initially thought. Either he had been given the wrong report, or the database just wasn't up to date. Everything had been underestimated; that was an understatement. Now either Azra was alive, or she was dead. There was no straddling the fence as he himself had done so many times before.

Vegeta lifted his head to see a young woman casting a shadow over him.

"Y-you'd bet-ter not, don't lay..your-can't." His feeble attempt at forming a sentence failed as he fainted head-first into the stream.

**~/~/~**

Vegeta's eyes shot open and he looked under the quilt to see he was bare wearing only his scouter. He was notably taller and much more lean than the solid frame of his childhood. He hadn't groomed himself in months and as such he had been growing in a goatee to match that of his father's. He surveyed his surroundings before spotting his armour on a nearby wooden chair in corner of the room. His jumpsuit however, was still missing. He grimaced as he sat up holding his ribcage. His wounds had been cleaned and bandaged. He threw the quilt to the ground and covered his manhood as he shuffled toward his armour.

"What are you doing out of bed. Don't you want to get better?" The woman called out from the doorway with his clean jumpsuit in hand

"I was fine without you," he spat.

"I thought that you were someone else. And if it weren't for me, you would have drowned," she said.

"I'm not thankful. Now give me back my jumpsuit and I'll be on my way!"

"You are not one hundred percent yet, you shouldn't risk reopening your wounds," she warned.

Vegeta clenched his teeth and grabbed his uniform before reluctantly backing over to the cot never once taking his eyes off the woman.

"What's your mission here?".

Vegeta shifted his eyes toward the candle-lit lamp and remained silent. He secretly wondered whether or not this was some sort of trap.

"Tell me, what are you here to do to my people, my home?"

"I'm looking for somebody," Vegeta said shrugging her off as he pushed his feet into his clothing.

"That's not what my people believe. You came here in a Cooler-issued space pod that's apart of the Cold family regime, and you expected us to receive you with open arms?"

Vegeta raised his gaze to find the woman leaning against the wall across from him. He observed her with crossed arms and a hostile expression.

"You resemble the orphan boy who was adopted by one of our fishermen. That was the reason I rushed over to you."

As soon as she finished her sentence one of his eyebrows shot up. So he  _was_  right about the planet.

"It's a shame that the two of you don't share the same mannerisms," she said stabbing the air between them using her hand as the blade.

"Where is he?" he demanded. "Tell me or I'll take your life."

"There's a small house just past the mountains toward the west. You'll find him there."

He had been searching for Tarble for a few years; unfortunately he had only gotten leads on the whereabouts of his brother but nothing concrete. He'd be damned if he'd let Frieza have him.

Vegeta walked through the front door he was greeted with the stares and whispers of the other villagers. He passed through the tiny village finding nourishment paying with his credit chip.

As the young man gnawed on a leg of meat he looked toward the mountains. Vegeta cleaned the bone and discarded it over his shoulder. He took a few steps forward before blasting off into the sky. As the prince passed over the mountains, he began tapping his scouter trying to pinpoint the exact location of his brother. The readings on the scouter began to scroll down quickly as if detecting a larger power level in the area.

"Well, I guess you got stronger," Vegeta said to himself.

Vegeta landed and began running toward the small house on the other end of the small lake.

"Vegeta," Azra screamed falling out of the sky ripping off her bandages. "We need to get out of here, right now. Frieza thinks that we've deserted the mission on Imecka. He's traced our pods to Gelbo and has sent the Ginyu Force after us. We have to get out of here now!" She landed on her feet and ran to his side.

"Not without my brother," he said still deep in thought.

"Frieza is definitely going to kill us this time," she cried. "Wait, you're what?!"

"Shut up and let me think." Vegeta paused and dug his hands into his hair.

"Since when have you had a brother and why are you only looking for him now?"

"I said shut up," he exclaimed with a balled fist.

As he silently walked over toward the small house five pods streaking through the sky grabbed his attention.

"And that would be them, the forerunners of our doom," Azra said solemnly.

Vegeta reached up to his face and began tapping a few buttons on his scouter. "They haven't landed yet. And by the time they finish that idiotic dance and introduction, we will have been long gone."

Vegeta began to inch toward the door. "I don't need you to protect me, call your pod and get out of here. Nappa and the others should be in the Ninth Quadrant by now."

Azra did as she was told and took to the sky to meet her pod halfway. Vegeta took a deep breath and pushed the door open. His scouter began to beep with life as he entered the one room house. The power level reading was off the chart.

"What is this stupid thing broken?" He asked himself as he took it off of his face to examine it. Vegeta smacked it against an open palm a few times before placing it back on his face.

Vegeta's senses began to pick up a tainted smell in the room. He lit an energy ball for illumination Blood. His instincts set in as he readied to defend himself.

"My, my monkey, how we've strayed so far from home."

The realization that his actions had been deemed predictable by his enemy made his heart sink but he refused to let it be evident in his voice.

"What are you doing here Zarbon?"

"I've been sent by Lord Frieza, it seems that you've been quite the distraction on purge missions. Disappearing before you arrive at every other planet, making detours in between purges. We had your pod outfitted with a tracking device."

Vegeta didn't display his nervousness on his face. He smirked arrogantly at him and folded his arms.

"So I see that you've been demoted from warrior to babysitter," Vegeta mused as he stroked his thin goatee.

Zarbon flung the body to the side and lunged at him. Vegeta expertly dodged his knee and blasted a hole through the roof in attempt to make a quick escape.

"Going somewhere prince Vegeta?" Zarbon asked while gathering himself to attack him again.

Vegeta quickly powered up and emitted light from his hand which blinded Zarbon; he shot up through the hole in the roof and flew into a deeply forested area without Zarbon in tow. He glanced behind him to ensure that he wasn't being followed before summoning his pod to fly low into the wooded area. It was heavily damaged after the ambush, but it was still in working order.

"Tracking technology," he whispered to himself. How could he have been so careless to think that they weren't following his every move. In order to escape his master for small periods of time, he would have to remain one step ahead of him and it was going to begin with the pod.

Vegeta looked over his head once more as the pod drew closer to him. He opened it up and began to take the inside apart. He removed the keyboard which revealed the blinking chip which read the coordinates of his destinations and crushed it between his index finger and his thumb. He installed the keyboard back to its original position and ordered it shut.

Vegeta heard the crunching of branches and leaves before whipping around to see Zarbon stop suddenly in his tracks. He watched him hold his hand up to his scouter in frustration.

"Captain Ginyu," he hesitated before continuing, "I lost the brat." He shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Because the little chimp blinded me that's why. All I see is glare right now." Zarbon began to ball his fists in anger. "It wasn't in the scouting report you provided when his warrant for capture was issued by Freiza."

Vegeta continued to hide in the thick brush; his ki was low due to his injuries but the more he began to heal he knew that he would start to show on Zarbon's scouter.

"Well you know what Ginyu," Zarbon said as he flicked the loose hair out of his face. "I'm not going to prance around in this mud, looking for the idiot Saiyan. He has no choice but to return to the mothership eventually. He can be punished then."

Unable to pinpoint his exact location, Zarbon turned and addressed the trees. "I know that you're out here ape, you wait until you get back to the mothership!" Zarbon blasted off into the sky and flew in the direction of the Ginyu Force.

Vegeta pushed past the brush to ensure that Zarbon was gone. He needed to think of a way to get off of the planet undetected and what to do about his brother. He sat down against a tree and pulled his knee to his chest.  _Just past the mountains,_  he remembered. But that would have made the house the right place. But the blood in the house, surely it couldn't have been Tarble's. Minus the blood everything in the house was pristine meaning that however died in there didn't put up a fight.

_Then where did he go?_

The ground underneath him began to shake jarring the prince from his thoughts. He thought that the planet beneath him was becoming undone. Had Frieza finally decided to end his life by blowing up the planet on which he stood.

' _Coward,'_ Vegeta thought to himself.

If he were to power up now Zarbon would for sure sense the spike on his scouter prompting him to return; Zarbon's pride wouldn't allow the prince to get away unscathed. However not to power up may result in certain death because of his previous injuries.

Vegeta balled his fists and dug his boots into the dirt opting to power up at that moment, but before he could the ground underneath him eroded and Vegeta was blown back by the wind and the steam that continued to emerge from the ground. He managed to grab onto the trunk of a tree and dig his fingertips into the bark.

' _So much for not attracting the attention of the Ginyu Force,'_  he thought as he clenched his teeth.

As the steam began to let up Vegeta frantically rubbed the dirt and debris from his eyes. Vegeta clenched his teeth and decided that he had to power-up for survival. The Prince of Saiyans ran from no one. He formed a small moon in his hand as a precaution; he only used Oozaru as his last resort. As he began to concentrate closer he caught a glimpse of his brother holding both of his palms on the ground.

' _Was it him that caused this?'_ Vegeta thought to himself.

Vegeta crouched low to power up and blasted off toward his brother. His time was limited, there was no doubt in his mind the Ginyu Force were already on their way over here to see about the commotion. As Vegeta neared closer to Tarble he cut out his ki entirely and began to glide full-speed toward the younger Saiyan. Tarble was caught completely off guard and was tackled deeper into the forest. The sheer amount of force that Vegeta used to get over there knocked the wind out of Tarble who lay in the dirt wincing in pain.

"Father?" He managed to squeak out as he looked up at the goatee-clad prince.

"Brother," he spat angrily. "Were you trying to kill me?"

"No, I-I didn't see you. I was focused on the green man with long hair. He barged into my house and my family was killed," he said with his head down in agony. "I wasn't able to defend them, I wasn't strong enough so I ran." Tears began to fall down the younger Saiyan's face at the realization that his world was becoming undone.

"Did he see you?" Vegeta asked while tapping his scouter for his pod.

"No, I felt his raw power and took off leaving them to fend for themselves. I'm a coward. I guess you won't be able to take me back home to mother and father after what I've done."

"They're both dead, and our planet is no more," Vegeta replied coldly.

Tarble fell to his back as the dam holding back everything was breached. It was the reason why he was banished from the planet. A Saiyan who wanted nothing to do with fighting or training. His passiveness was detected at an early age; however after everything that had happened, it turned out to be the best option.

"Dry your tears, I need to get you out of here now."

Tarble was now crying uncontrollably at the news holding on to a tree. "Where will I go now," he asked through his hysterics." Tarble's life had turned upside down in a matter of minutes. His home was ambushed, his family was killed and he had just learned the fate of his biological parents.

"I am sending you far away from here, this planet must be destroyed," Vegeta said floating over to him. "If you do not comply you're going to get both of us killed!"

"No, I cannot leave this planet. I've already lost one home and I won't lose another! I've also lost both of my families, you can't," he pleaded.

Vegeta grabbed Tarble by the hair and delivered a powerful uppercut to his ribcage knocking him to the ground. He watched as Tarble began heaving struggling to catch his breath. He looked down at his younger brother briefly thinking about what their lives would have been like under different circumstances. At that moment, part of himself was glad that it was him who was in Freiza's possession and not Tarble.

"Please don't, this is my home. These people have accepted me as one of their own with open arms. Leave them out of this brother," Tarble pleaded through his tears. "I promise that I can become strong like you. I-I'll train harder but I beg of you don't harm them."

"You're weak! Nobody can know about you or your whereabouts, or your relation to me. This planet has people who have knowledge of both you and I. They will be interrogated and tortured and you will be hunted to the ends of the universe. This will probably be the very last time you see me again," Vegeta said. He didn't know how he was going to get off of the planet, this mission was beginning to look like a one-way destination by the minute.

"Please brother don't do this, I need you," Tarble began, forcing himself to his feet. "Train me!"

As Vegeta shook his head in reply, Tarble launched himself toward his brother and embraced him. Vegeta quickly brushed him off and opened his pod. He began to type in coordinates for the furthest galaxy he knew, far out of the Cold Family sectors. He grabbed his blackened necklace and put it on under his armour.

"Get in."

"No, I won't leave my-," Tarble began before being cut off with his brothers foot to his chest. Vegeta straddled him and punched him until he was barely able to speak. Vegeta grabbed him by the hair and threw him into the pod. "Your Saiyan blood will heal you by the time you get to your destination. Forget that I ever existed because I plan on doing the same. One day you'll understand why this had to be done."

Vegeta reached into his armour to retrieve his credit chip and tossed it into the pod. "This is untraceable, use it to take care of yourself. When you get to the destination set in the pod, travel further." He commanded the door shut and backed away.

With mouth bloodied and eyes swollen Tarble peeked up at his older brother and screamed. He began to bang his head onto the door of the pod in frustration, "How can you ever find peace when you destroy innocent lives?"

"I don't plan on finding it." Vegeta walked over to the underbelly of the pod and erased the serial number etched on it with his ki.

Vegeta turned his back as the pod prepared for takeoff. He heard Tarble struggling to get out and refused to turn his face toward him. He wasn't going to entertain the idea of having a relationship his brother. This mission was solely out of loyalty to his blood and nothing more. They were going to remain estranged until the day he died. He listened as the pod blasted off of the planet before turning his attention elsewhere.

Vegeta now needed to come up with a plan for escape and he needed to do it quickly. He looked up at the contrails left behind by the Ginyu Force's pods. He took to the sky and followed the trail; he was certain that he would find at least one pod and set a course into the eye of the storm.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, please turn your attention to our fifth match for this afternoon: Idasa Yoshida versus Trunks Briefs."

The announcement caught the attention of Bulma who removed the scouter from her face and placed it in her purse.

"My Idasa is going to beat that boy with his eyes closed," she proudly proclaimed. "He's going to beat that boy with his eyes closed."

Bulma rolled her eyes. "When Trunks wins this prize money, I'm going to inject it into my foundation for kids, and your son will be welcome to take martial arts lessons from one of the many dojos owned by the Capsule Corporation."

Both women came nose-to-nose and glared at each other before Chi-Chi interjected. "You two have nothing to fight about once Goten wins!" She smiled proudly, "I will be using the money to enroll him private school and hire the best private tutors."

Bulma sat down wearing a sinister smirk on her face a. "Kick his ass Trunks!"

**~/~/~**

Trunks crouched down and readied himself in his fighting stance. He was determined to win this match with ease; he needed to conserve all of his energy for his match with Goten. The slim Idasa stood by uncaring and grossly underestimating the strength of his opponent.

"I'm going to make quick work of you," he said cockily.

"I'm going to allow you to try and hit me," Trunks said unmoving. "If you land a punch I'll walk out of the ring."

Idasa threw his head back and laughed, "Well if you want to make it easy for me to move onto the next round then so be it." As he finished his sentence Idasa flew forward leading with his fist. Trunks smirked and cocked his head to the side evading the attack. Idasa lifted his knee toward Trunks' stomach which was expertly batted away.

The Saiyain continued to evade his opponent all while wearing a smug smirk on his face.

"Time's up," he pompously declared.

Trunks wound up and his foot met Idasa's chin in one swift movement snapping the boy's head back. Trunks closed his eyes and turned to leave the ring before Idasa was able to fall to the ground.

**~/~/~**

Bulma threw her head back and laughed. There was not a single doubt in her mind her son would've won the match with ease. The only thing that Trunks really had to do was power up; the sheer force of his ki would have blown his opponent into the stands.

"I guess you'll be leaving now," Bulma said without even looking over at Mrs. Yoshida.

The burly woman huffed and didn't even offer Bulma a second glance as she gathered her belongings and headed in the other direction.

**~/~/~**

Vegeta peered down from the shadows as the match concluded. He looked around to make sure that he was alone before allowing his chest to puff with pride. He aspired for his son to pass him one day on the battlefield. For reasons unbeknownst to him, his son adored him. Vegeta signed in resignation once again contemplating what had happened to him; he had changed, albeit reluctantly, but changed nonetheless.

' _When did any of this even start?'_ He asked himself as he began to search his memories.

* * *

_Flashback_

* * *

Vegeta's eyes were slow to open as he lay on his back. Peering toward the sky he reached toward his chest and felt around the fine whole that had pierced his heart hours earlier. He held up his hands looking at them in disbelief.

' _Impossible!'_  He thought to himself. He sat up and continued to look at his hands. He was alive. A flash of yellow light caught his attention and his mouth dropped in shock.  _Kakkarot has ascended!'_

"Hey Vegeta," Bulma whispered interrupting him from his thoughts. "This planet isn't going to hold up much longer, I have a ship we all need to escape."

"I run from no one," he proclaimed.

"Bulma have you lost your mind," Yamcha interjected. "He's kidnapped you, terrorized the Namekians, threatened to kill you me and all of our friends, and now you want him to accompany us back to Earth?"

"Yamcha, there's no way that he's as evil as he lets on. The dragon wouldn't have revived him. Do you see any of Frieza's henchmen prancing about?"

"Bulma-."

"Yamcha stop," Bulma began. She pulled Yamcha closer in hopes that the Saiyan wouldn't hear.

"While all of my friends failed to rescue me, he didn't hurt me and he never tried to. He said he wanted the Dragon Balls so that he could wish to be the most powerful being in the universe. To-to be immortal," she stammered. "But the more time I spent with him the more I realized that he wasn't trying to destroy anything except for Frieza."

"Think Yamcha, the only reason he came to Earth in the first place was to recruit Goku under the guise that they were the last remaining Saiyans, but it was really to help him beat Frieza. He never came to Earth to conquer it. He came to Earth for help even though he refuses to admit it!"

Vegeta refused to allow his eyes to be torn away from the battle that was taking place before him. His ear was open to every word she had said and he mentally winced at her assertions.

She saw right through him.

* * *

Vegeta sensed a presence that jarred him from his thoughts. He whipped around to see a figure stalking in the shadows.

"Show yourself. If I have to ask twice I will be very angry," Vegeta threatened.

The short toad-like figure emerged from the shadows and grinned at Vegeta. He stood no more than four feet tall and wore an 'M' prominently on his clothing.

"Who are you?" Vegeta asked coldly.

"I can return what you desire," he said to him.

"And what do you think that is?" Vegeta turned away and faced the ring as the next match began.

"Power rivalled by no one," he replied.

Vegeta's interest was now peaked. In his own eyes, he had gotten soft; he had people in his life that he cared for; he allowed himself to indulge in earthly customs with his wife and son. Vegeta clenched his teeth, wrestling with the decision to entertain the lunatic that stood before him.

"You're making me ask twice, who are you?"

"Babadi."


End file.
